scathing

CEFRC1

/ˈskeɪðɪŋ/

adjective · verb

Türkçe translations

Translating…

In plain English

  1. 01

    adjective

    Strongly and bitterly critical, showing severe disapproval.

  2. 02

    adjective

    Extra detail

    Harmful or painful; acerbic.

Examples

  • Her scathing putdown made it clear what she thought of his comments.

  • We were surprised to hear him make such scathing remarks about his best friend.

At a glance

Sits at C1 on the CEFR scale

Senses
4
Parts of speech
2
Citations
1

Deep Dive

adjective

Extra meaning

  1. Harshly or bitterly critical; vitriolic.

verb

Extra meaning

  1. present participle and gerund of scathe

More examples

In context

  • Tom wrote a scathing review of Mary's book.

Quick test

Two questions on this entry. Nothing is scored.

Question 1 · Quick check

The critic wrote a blank review, harshly attacking every aspect of the film.

Practise this properly in the app, where the word comes back before you forget it.

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