Biting, bitter or caustic; having or expressing strong and unpleasantly negative feelings; -- of speech or feelings; the vitriolic denunciations of opponents by partisan columnists.

harsh or corrosive in tone; "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"

Of or pertaining to vitriol; derived from, or resembling, vitriol; vitriolous; as, a vitriolic taste. Cf. Vitriol.

of a substance, especially a strong acid; capable of destroying or eating away by chemical action