- 1 having a taste like that of a lemon or of fruit that is not ready to eat sour apples a sour flavour opposite sweet see also sweet-and-sour Synonymsbitterpungent sour acrid sharp acidThese words all describe a strong, unpleasant taste or smell.bitter (of a taste or smell) strong and usually unpleasant; (of food or drink) having a bitter taste.pungent (of a smell or taste) strong and usually unpleasant; (of food or smoke) having a pungent smell or taste:the pungent smell of burning rubbersour (of a taste) bitter like the taste of a lemon or of fruit that is not ripe; (of food or drink) having a sour taste:Too much pulp produces a sour wine.acrid (of a smell or taste) strong and unpleasant; (of smoke) having an acrid smell:acrid smoke from burning tyressharp (of a taste or smell) strong and slightly bitter; (of food or drink) having a sharp taste:The cheese has a distinctively sharp taste.acid (of a taste or smell) bitter, like the taste of a lemon or of fruit that is not ripe; (of food or drink) having an acid taste.which word? A bitter taste is usually unpleasant, but some people enjoy the bitter flavour of coffee or chocolate. No other word can describe this flavour. A sharp or pungent flavour is more strong than unpleasant, especially when describing cheese. Sharp, sour and acid all describe the taste of a lemon or a fruit that is not ripe. An acrid smell is strong and unpleasant, especially the smell of smoke or burning, but not the smell of food.Patterns a(n) bitter/pungent/sour/acrid/sharp/acid taste/flavour a(n) bitter/pungent/acrid/sharp/acid smell/odour a(n) bitter/sour/sharp/acid fruit pungent/sharp cheese pungent/acrid smoke Wordfindertastebitter, bland, hot, pungent, savoury, sour, spicy, sweet, tart, taste Oxford Collocations Dictionary verbsbe, smell, taste, … adverbextremely, fairly, very, … phrasesleave a sour taste in somebody’s mouth See full entry See related entries: Taste of food
- 2 (especially of milk) having an unpleasant taste or smell because it is not fresh to turn/go sour a sour smell Synonymsbitterpungent sour acrid sharp acidThese words all describe a strong, unpleasant taste or smell.bitter (of a taste or smell) strong and usually unpleasant; (of food or drink) having a bitter taste.pungent (of a smell or taste) strong and usually unpleasant; (of food or smoke) having a pungent smell or taste:the pungent smell of burning rubbersour (of a taste) bitter like the taste of a lemon or of fruit that is not ripe; (of food or drink) having a sour taste:Too much pulp produces a sour wine.acrid (of a smell or taste) strong and unpleasant; (of smoke) having an acrid smell:acrid smoke from burning tyressharp (of a taste or smell) strong and slightly bitter; (of food or drink) having a sharp taste:The cheese has a distinctively sharp taste.acid (of a taste or smell) bitter, like the taste of a lemon or of fruit that is not ripe; (of food or drink) having an acid taste.which word? A bitter taste is usually unpleasant, but some people enjoy the bitter flavour of coffee or chocolate. No other word can describe this flavour. A sharp or pungent flavour is more strong than unpleasant, especially when describing cheese. Sharp, sour and acid all describe the taste of a lemon or a fruit that is not ripe. An acrid smell is strong and unpleasant, especially the smell of smoke or burning, but not the smell of food.Patterns a(n) bitter/pungent/sour/acrid/sharp/acid taste/flavour a(n) bitter/pungent/acrid/sharp/acid smell/odour a(n) bitter/sour/sharp/acid fruit pungent/sharp cheese pungent/acrid smoke Oxford Collocations Dictionary verbsbe, smell, taste, … adverbextremely, fairly, very, … phrasesleave a sour taste in somebody’s mouth See full entry
- 3(of people) not cheerful; bad-tempered and unpleasant a sour and disillusioned woman a sour face The meeting ended on a sour note with several people walking out. Word OriginOld English sūr, of Germanic origin; related to Dutch zuur and German sauer.Extra examples The milk smelled sour. The sauce tasted very sour. The whole experience has really left a sour taste in my mouth. Their friendship has turned a little sour. Their relationship quickly turned sour. As time went by the marriage turned sour. Chinese sweet-and-sour pork He smelled a sour whiff on the old man’s breath. She smelled the slightly sour smell of beer on his breath. She was a sour and disillusioned old woman. The milk had turned sour. Too much pulp produces a sour wine.Idioms
to stop being pleasant or working properly Their relationship soon went sour.
(saying) used to show that you think somebody is jealous and is pretending that something is not important He said he didn't want the job anyway, but that's just sour grapes.
Check pronunciation: sour
