What is the Latin word for bitter?

The usual Latin words for “bitter” are amārus, acerbus, gravis; also mordāx, aculeātus, amārēscō. The right choice depends on the sense; see the distinctions below.

English → Latin

“bitter” in Latin

amārusbitter (taste); harsh, shrill (sound); sarcastic (speech)acerbusharsh, bitter, unripe, sour, premature, not yet marriageable; sharp, severe, bitter (i.e., extremely painful); rough, vi gravisheavy; pregnant; troublesome, hard mordāxbiting; snappish; tart; cutting; caustic aculeātusprickly; barbed; stinging, barbed (metaphorical)amārēscōto become bitter subamārussomewhat bitter etc.

Riddle & Arnold A Copious and Critical English–Latin Lexicon, 1864

bitter

in taste, amarus, acerbus. A bitter taste, sapor amarus or acerbus: taste in the mouth, os amarum. To become bitter, amarescere, inamarescere. Somewhat bitter, subamarus. Bitter sweet, ex dulci amarus.

Violent, severe, acerbus; gravis. Bitter want, summa egestas, mendicitas. Bitter hate, acerbum odium. A bitter enemy, acerbus inimicus. Bitter cold, frigus acerbum.

Biting, cutting, reproachful, acerbus, amarus, mordax, aculeatus.

Quick answer

What is the Latin word for bitter?: The usual Latin words for “bitter” are amārus, acerbus, gravis; also mordāx, aculeātus, amārēscō. The right choice depends on the sense; see the distinctions below.

Entry from J. E. Riddle & T. K. Arnold, A Copious and Critical English–Latin Lexicon (rev. C. Anthon, New York: Harper, 1864), digitised by Fergus J. P. Walsh, CC BY-SA 4.0; Latin markup adapted by latindictionary.co.