scathing 1 of 2

scathing

2 of 2

verb

present participle of scathe

Synonym Chooser

How does the adjective scathing contrast with its synonyms?

Some common synonyms of scathing are acrid, caustic, and mordant. While all these words mean "stingingly incisive," scathing implies indignant attacks delivered with fierce severity.

a scathing satire

When might acrid be a better fit than scathing?

The synonyms acrid and scathing are sometimes interchangeable, but acrid implies bitterness and often malevolence.

acrid invective

When is it sensible to use caustic instead of scathing?

In some situations, the words caustic and scathing are roughly equivalent. However, caustic suggests a biting wit.

caustic comments

Where would mordant be a reasonable alternative to scathing?

The words mordant and scathing are synonyms, but do differ in nuance. Specifically, mordant suggests a wit that is used with deadly effectiveness.

mordant reviews of the play

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of scathing
Adjective
In a scathing, 137-page opinion, U.S. District Judge Ellen Hollander sharply questioned DOGE’s unfettered access to Americans’ personally identifiable information. Ella Lee, The Hill, 20 Mar. 2025 Hogan's post came after a series of back-and-forth posts in which his ex-wife Linda Hogan and his daughter Brooke shared scathing accusations. Lauryn Overhultz, FOXNews.com, 31 Mar. 2025 Jost also delivered a scathing take on the recent Paddington Bear statue theft in England. Ron Estes, MSNBC Newsweek, 30 Mar. 2025 In 2018, when comedian Michelle Wolf delivered scathing jokes about the Trump administration, including about then-Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders, who was sitting on the dais. Ted Johnson, Deadline, 29 Mar. 2025 See All Example Sentences for scathing
Recent Examples of Synonyms for scathing
Verb
  • The Connecticut Conference of Municipalities recently launched a campaign attacking the governor for allowing the state’s overreliance on property taxes to worsen and for seeking to slash summer work programs that assist the state’s troubled youths.
    Keith M. Phaneuf, Hartford Courant, 15 Mar. 2025
  • Moyes is likely to spend the summer focusing on improving the squad’s attacking output.
    Patrick Boyland, The Athletic, 14 Mar. 2025
Adjective
  • That’s the premise of Douglas Is Cancelled, a cruelly funny 2024 BBC sitcom that seems very much in sync with satiric comedies such as The Office and W1A and Yes Minister.
    Air Mail, Air Mail, 22 Mar. 2025
  • Misery, a horror movie with a satiric streak, launched Bates’s film stardom.
    Tim Grierson, Vulture, 21 Feb. 2025
Verb
  • Hundreds of drones being used as part of a Saturday night aerial light show in Lake Eola Park in downtown Orlando appeared to be flying into position before several started falling from the sky before slamming to the ground, according to videos posted online.
    Louis Casiano, Fox News, 23 Dec. 2024
  • His endorsement of the AfD came alongside a video of a far-right German commentator slamming the leading candidate to become Germany’s next chancellor, the conservative Friedrich Merz.
    Laura Kelly, The Hill, 20 Dec. 2024
Adjective
  • Emmy-nominated for the role the first time out, Ramsey is genius in it, the perfect amounts of precocious, sarcastic, and wide-eyedly vulnerable.
    Zing Tsjeng, Vogue, 11 Apr. 2025
  • What about someone who posts a meme that is satirical or a comment that is meant to be sarcastic?
    Peter Suciu, Forbes.com, 10 Apr. 2025
Adjective
  • The season does pepper throughout a sense that Santos has a real heart under all that barbed wire.
    Nicholas Quah, Vulture, 10 Apr. 2025
  • The base that this is based on now has a bunch of barbed wire and fencing.
    Fred Topel, Deadline, 5 Apr. 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Scathing.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/scathing. Accessed 24 Apr. 2025.

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