Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “acrimonious” come from?

Acrimonious derives from Middle French acrimonieux, which comes from Latin acrimonia meaning sharpness or harshness, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European h₂eḱ- meaning to be sharp.

acrimonious (English): Harsh and sharp, or bitter and not pleasant to...

Definitions

  1. Harsh and sharp, or bitter and not pleasant to...

Ancestry of “acrimonious”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishacrimonyA sharp and bitter hatred
2Middle Frenchacrimonie—
3Latinacrimoniasharpness, pungency; acrimony, austerity
4Latinācer—
5Latinsaccharumsugar
6Ancient Greekσάκχαρsugar; sugar cane
7Sanskritशर्कराgravel, grit, pebbles, shingle, gravelly mould or...
8Proto-Indo-AryanśárkaraH—
9Proto-Indo-IranianćárkaraH—
10Proto-Indo-Europeanḱorkeh₂gravel, boulder; boulder; gravel

Words derived from “acrimonious”

  • acrimoniously
  • acrimoniousness
  • nonacrimonious
Every word from Proto-Indo-European ḱorkeh₂ →