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
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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
-
For example, maror, or bitter herbs, represent the bitterness of slavery.—
Lucia Cheng,
Des Moines Register,
1 Apr. 2026
-
The rest of the band joins in as Ayewa calls for the listener to look up to a world above war, bitterness, and division.—
Steve Donofrio,
Los Angeles Times,
31 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
Orkin's bed bug treatment methods may include targeted applications, heat treatments or a combination of strategies, depending on the severity.—
Alora Bopray,
USA Today,
1 Apr. 2026
-
The department said the driver's seat was the only part of the car that remained intact, but despite the severity of the crash, the driver suffered only minor injuries.—
Christopher Harris,
CBS News,
1 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
Iran war has entered its fifth week with hostilities escalating across the region.—
Anniek Bao,
CNBC,
31 Mar. 2026
-
After all, a bit more than a decade later, hostilities would explode anew in the Arab-Israeli War of 1967, during which Nasser shut the canal again.—
Ishaan Tharoor,
New Yorker,
30 Mar. 2026
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
-
To predict how an outbreak will progress, epidemiologists often use stock-and-flow diagrams: illustrations featuring stocks of people (susceptible, infected, recovered, dead) and arrows showing flows between them based on factors such as exposure or virulence.—
Quanta Magazine,
Quanta Magazine,
4 Mar. 2026
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Genes involved in adaptation, such as those linked to virulence, metabolism or host interaction, also move with them.—
Lily Peck,
The Conversation,
17 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
Mclusky were always rooted more in bile than hormones, contempt and wit over quick-burn idealism.—
Alex Robert Ross,
Pitchfork,
25 Mar. 2026
-
Dolphins great and media star Jim Mandich suffered from bile-duct cancer in 2010.—
Dave Hyde,
Sun Sentinel,
26 Feb. 2026
Noun
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Officers arrested Granger on Tuesday and charged him with rape, aggravated assault, malice murder, and two counts of felony murder.—
Dan Raby,
CBS News,
1 Apr. 2026
-
Peterson said there was no evidence of malice by Dance and that good faith is presumed for public officers.—
Charlotte Observer,
Charlotte Observer,
27 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
National media stories appear almost daily about taxpayers’ anger over ever increasing levies on their homes.—
Jon Coupal,
Oc Register,
27 Mar. 2026
-
Iannarelli discussed how threatening individuals often escalate their anger verbally.—
Evonne Andris,
Miami Herald,
26 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Mordancy.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/mordancy. Accessed 4 Apr. 2026.
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