CAUSTIC
Dictionary entry overview: What does caustic mean?
• CAUSTIC (noun)
The noun CAUSTIC has 1 sense:
1. any chemical substance that burns or destroys living tissue
Familiarity information: CAUSTIC used as a noun is very rare.
• CAUSTIC (adjective)
The adjective CAUSTIC has 2 senses:
1. harsh or corrosive in tone
2. of a substance, especially a strong acid; capable of destroying or eating away by chemical action
Familiarity information: CAUSTIC used as an adjective is rare.
Dictionary entry details
• CAUSTIC (noun)
Meaning:
Any chemical substance that burns or destroys living tissue
Classified under:
Nouns denoting substances
Hypernyms ("caustic" is a kind of...):
chemical compound; compound ((chemistry) a substance formed by chemical union of two or more elements or ingredients in definite proportion by weight)
Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "caustic"):
lye (a strong solution of sodium or potassium hydroxide)
silver nitrate (a nitrate used in making photographic emulsions; also used in medicine as a cautery and as a topical antibacterial agent)
• CAUSTIC (adjective)
Meaning:
Harsh or corrosive in tone
Synonyms:
caustic; blistering; vitriolic; acid; acerbic; acerb; sulfurous; sulphurous; venomous; acrid; bitter; virulent
Context examples:
an acerbic tone piercing otherwise flowery prose / a barrage of acid comments / her acrid remarks make her many enemies / bitter words / blistering criticism / caustic jokes about political assassination, talk-show hosts and medical ethics / a sulfurous denunciation / a vitriolic critique
Similar:
unpleasant (disagreeable to the senses, to the mind, or feelings)
Meaning:
Of a substance, especially a strong acid; capable of destroying or eating away by chemical action
Synonyms:
corrosive; caustic; erosive; mordant; vitriolic
Similar:
destructive (causing destruction or much damage)
