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Caustic   /kˈɑstɪk/  /kˈɔstɪk/   Listen
adjective
Caustical, Caustic  adj.  
1.
Capable of destroying the texture of anything or eating away its substance by chemical action; burning; corrosive; searing.
2.
Severe; satirical; sharp; as, a caustic remark.
Caustic curve (Optics), a curve to which the ray of light, reflected or refracted by another curve, are tangents, the reflecting or refracting curve and the luminous point being in one plane.
Caustic lime. See under Lime.
Caustic potash, Caustic soda (Chem.), the solid hydroxides potash, KOH, and soda, NaOH, or solutions of the same.
Caustic silver, nitrate of silver, lunar caustic.
Caustic surface (Optics), a surface to which rays reflected or refracted by another surface are tangents. Caustic curves and surfaces are called catacaustic when formed by reflection, and diacaustic when formed by refraction.
Synonyms: Stinging; cutting; pungent; searching.



noun
Caustic  n.  
1.
Any substance or means which, applied to animal or other organic tissue, burns, corrodes, or destroys it by chemical action; an escharotic.
2.
(Optics) A caustic curve or caustic surface.






Collaborative International Dictionary of English 0.48








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"Caustic" Quotes from Famous Books



... difficult to get it ploughed in, particularly in wet weather, immediately after spreading (which is essential where you grow wheat on the same land every year) without injuring the feet of the horses. You speak of ten days or a fortnight being necessary to neutralize caustic lime, but our horses had their feet injured by it six weeks after it had been spread on the land, last year, although the weather had been wet almost the whole of the time, say from the beginning of February to the middle of March. You ...
— Essays in Natural History and Agriculture • Thomas Garnett

... coach turned to his work, the batting began again, and the crack of the ball, the rush of feet, the sharp cries of the players mingled once more with the laughter and caustic wit of the ...
— The Young Pitcher • Zane Grey

... is as follows: "A Letter from a Gentleman to the Honourable Ed. Howard, Esq., occasioned by a Civiliz'd Epistle of Mr. Dryden's before his Second Edition of his Indian Emperour. In the Savoy, printed by Thomas Newcomb, 1668." The "Civiliz'd Epistle" was a caustic attack on Sir Robert Howard; and the Letter is signed, "Sir, your faithful and humble servant, R. ...
— Diary of Samuel Pepys, Complete • Samuel Pepys

... papers for a year's furlough with permission to spend the first half in India. This was granted, and my leave commenced from March 27th. By April 9th I was at Nowshera, and by three o'clock on the following morning, with head shaved, a weak solution of caustic and walnut juice applied to hands and face, and wearing the dress peculiar to the Meahs or Kaka Khels, and in company with Hosein Shah, I sallied out as Mir Mahomed or ...
— Memoir of William Watts McNair • J. E. Howard

... restitution of the kingdom of Sidon to the lawful heir: a prince with such a hypochondriac name, that he would have disgraced the title-page of any piece; who would have been able to bear an opera entitled L'Abdolonimo? I have contrived to name him as seldom as possible." So true is it, as the caustic Boileau exclaims of an epic poet of his days, who had shown some dexterity in cacophony, when he ...
— Curiosities of Literature, Vol. II (of 3) - Edited, With Memoir And Notes, By His Son, The Earl Of Beaconsfield • Isaac D'Israeli


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