bitterly
bitterly — adverb
1. with strong, lasting anger toward someone — often because they did something you
with strong, lasting anger toward someone — often because they did something you cannot forgive or forget.
Zane complained bitterly about the unfair grade his teacher gave him.
complain bitterly + about + noun phrase
The factory workers spoke bitterly of the manager who had cut their wages.
speak bitterly of + person
Mei still resents her brother bitterly for selling their late mother's house.
Local farmers bitterly oppose the new road that will cut through their fields.
- resentfully
very close in meaning; slightly more formal.
- angrily
broader; lacks the sense of long-held grievance.
- acrimoniously
formal; usually describes disputes or arguments rather than feelings.
- warmly
with friendly, kind feeling.
- graciously
with polite acceptance, even when disappointed.
文法句型
bitterly + verb of speaking/feeling (complain, resent, oppose)
用法筆記
Subject is usually a person or group with a real grievance. Frequently pairs with verbs of speech (complain, protest), feeling (resent, regret), and opposition (oppose, criticise). Distinguish from sense 2: this sense centres on anger toward another party; sense 2 centres on personal sadness.
常見錯誤
2. with deep, painful sorrow — usually after a loss, a failure, or a bad outcome yo
with deep, painful sorrow — usually after a loss, a failure, or a bad outcome you cannot change.
The little boy wept bitterly when his puppy did not come home that night.
weep / cry bitterly
Sofia was bitterly disappointed when the medical school rejected her application.
bitterly disappointed + by/about
Years later, Daniel still regrets bitterly that he never visited his grandmother in hospital.
The whole village mourned bitterly for the children lost in the river flood.
文法句型
bitterly + verb of crying/regretting/disappointing
用法筆記
Common in fixed pairings: 'bitterly disappointed', 'weep / cry bitterly', 'bitterly regret'. Distinguish from sense 1 (guide_word ANGRY RESENTMENT): here the feeling is sorrow turned inward, not anger turned outward at someone else.
常見錯誤
3. to a degree that the cold feels painful and hard to bear; used almost only with
to a degree that the cold feels painful and hard to bear; used almost only with words about cold weather.
It was bitterly cold on the mountain, and our fingers went numb within minutes.
bitterly cold (fixed collocation)
A bitterly cold wind blew across the empty car park as we waited for the bus.
a bitterly cold + wind / night / morning
The hikers struggled through a bitterly cold January night on the way down to the village.
January in Helsinki can be bitterly cold, with temperatures falling well below minus twenty.
- bone-chillingly
vivid, informal; emphasises feeling the cold deep inside.
- piercingly
describes cold that feels sharp, especially wind.
- savagely
stronger and more dramatic; common in news writing about weather.
- pleasantly
mild and comfortable, the opposite of biting cold.
文法句型
bitterly + cold / cold-related adjective
用法筆記
Almost always followed by 'cold', 'freezing', or a noun referring to cold conditions ('wind', 'night', 'winter'). Do not use this sense to mean 'extremely' before unrelated adjectives — 'bitterly tired' or 'bitterly hot' sound wrong.