as in bitterness
biting sharpness of feeling or expression
the surprising mordancy with which the two physicians contested each other's claim to having discovered an effective vaccine for polio
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of mordancy
But Lloyd’s version brims with mordancy.
—
Sarah Weinman, New York Times, 10 Feb. 2023
The gray-tint, cross-hatched drawings evoke George Cruikshank and Samuel Palmer, but the mordancy is vintage Sendak.
—The Week Staff, The Week, 17 Oct. 2022
Sarah Weinman, New York Times, 10 Feb. 2023
The gray-tint, cross-hatched drawings evoke George Cruikshank and Samuel Palmer, but the mordancy is vintage Sendak.
—The Week Staff, The Week, 17 Oct. 2022
Recent Examples of Synonyms for mordancy
Noun
-
But her private letters to her sister Cassandra show a sharper and more astringent person, someone whose cruelty and bitterness were redeemed only by her jokes.—
Lucy Worsley
September 16,
Literary Hub,
16 Sep. 2025
-
The Bitter Mai Tai is a full-fledged neo classic, first bright with lime and rum, then deep with almond, and then—where a standard Mai Tai would fall away with a lingering malic zing—the Bitter Mai Tai rises in a bold third act, humming with bitterness and the banana-funk of the rum.—
Jason O'Bryan,
Robb Report,
13 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
The severity of droughts, flooding, all of that will get worse.—
Hugh Cameron,
MSNBC Newsweek,
12 Sep. 2025
-
The severity of a sprain depends on how much of a ligament is torn.—
Bruce Y. Lee,
Forbes.com,
11 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
The Islamic Republic of Iran is determined to preserve its independence at any cost, stand on its own feet, and firmly resist the excessive demands, aggression, and acts of hostility by foreign powers—including the United States and the Zionist regime.—
Amira El-Fekki,
MSNBC Newsweek,
18 Sep. 2025
-
The message refers to the conflict in Gaza and calls for an end to hostilities.—
Kathleen Walsh,
Glamour,
15 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
The virulency of Covid-19 trained even those of us who shop locally out of principal to purchase online.—
Marc Peruzzi,
Outside Online,
2 Mar. 2021
Noun
-
While VUMs require more testing to establish their true risks to public health, VOIs are explicitly confirmed to have genetic changes that affect virus characteristics like transmissibility and virulence.—
Jack Knudson,
Discover Magazine,
9 June 2025
-
The diminished virulence that the pathogen evolved in response to more of its hosts dying potentially caused these earlier plague pandemics to fizzle out.—
Laura Baisas,
Popular Science,
29 May 2025
Noun
-
Digestive Support Turmeric helps stimulate bile production in the gallbladder, which promotes fat digestion.—
Lindsay Curtis,
Verywell Health,
8 Sep. 2025
-
This allows bile to drain out of the liver and is used to prevent liver failure.—
Alyce Collins,
MSNBC Newsweek,
7 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
More than avoiding malice, we are called to take responsibility for the impact of our words.—
Andrew Weinstein,
Time,
12 Sep. 2025
-
Understand that controlling behaviors may stem from fear and insecurity rather than malice.—
Mark Travers,
Forbes.com,
11 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
During the 2008 financial crisis, Biglari seized on shareholder anger and economic uncertainty.—
Lily Mae Lazarus,
Fortune,
18 Sep. 2025
-
Taking on Kimmel On Wednesday afternoon, Carr tapped into preexisting MAGA media anger about a Monday night Kimmel monologue and used a right-wing podcaster’s platform to blast Kimmel and pressure ABC’s parent company Disney.—
Brian Stelter,
CNN Money,
18 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Mordancy.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/mordancy. Accessed 20 Sep. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share