Corrosive

4 definitions found

From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:

  Corrosive \Cor*ro"sive\ (k?r-r?"s?v), a. [Cf. F. corrosif.]
     1. Eating away; having the power of gradually wearing,
        changing, or destroying the texture or substance of a
        body; as, the corrosive action of an acid. "Corrosive
        liquors." --Grew. "Corrosive famine." --Thomson.
        [1913 Webster]


  
     2. Having the quality of fretting or vexing.
        [1913 Webster]
  
              Care is no cure, but corrosive.       --Shak.
        [1913 Webster]
  
     {Corrosive sublimate} (Chem.), mercuric chloride, {HgCl2}; so
        called because obtained by sublimation, and because of its
        harsh irritating action on the body tissue. Usually it is
        in the form of a heavy, transparent, crystalline
        substance, easily soluble, and of an acrid, burning taste.
        It is a virulent poison, a powerful antiseptic, and an
        excellent antisyphilitic; called also {mercuric
        bichloride}. It is to be carefully distinguished from
        calomel, the mild chloride of mercury.
        [1913 Webster]

From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:

  Corrosive \Cor*ro"sive\, n.
     1. That which has the quality of eating or wearing away
        gradually.
        [1913 Webster]
  
              [Corrosives] act either directly, by chemically
              destroying the part, or indirectly by causing
              inflammation and gangrene.            --Dunglison.
        [1913 Webster]
  
     2. That which has the power of fretting or irritating.
        [1913 Webster]
  
              Such speeches . . . are grievous corrosives.
                                                    --Hooker.
        -- {Cor*ro"sive*ly}, adv. -- {Cor*ro"sive*ness}, n.
        [1913 Webster]

From WordNet (r) 2.0 [wn]:

  corrosive
       adj : of a substance, especially a strong acid; capable of
             destroying or eating away by chemical action [syn: {caustic},
              {erosive}, {vitriolic}]
       n : a substance having the tendency to cause corrosion (such a
           strong acids or alkali)

From Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0 [moby-thes]:

  125 Moby Thesaurus words for "corrosive":
     ablative, acerb, acerbate, acerbic, acid, acidic, acidulent,
     acidulous, acrid, acrimonious, actual cautery, angry, baleful,
     baneful, biodegradable, biting, bitter, brand, brand iron,
     branding iron, caustic, cauter, cauterant, cauterizer, cautery,
     corroding, corrupting, corruptive, counterproductive, cutting,
     damaging, deadly, decomposable, decomposing, degradable,
     deleterious, detrimental, dilapidated, disadvantageous,
     discontented, disintegrable, disintegrated, disintegrating,
     disintegrative, disjunctive, disruptive, disserviceable,
     distressing, driving, effective, electrocautery, eroding, erosive,
     escharotic, feeling evil, forceful, forcible, gutsy, harmful,
     hot iron, hurtful, imperative, impressive, incisive, injurious,
     keen, lethal, lunar caustic, malefic, malevolent, malign,
     malignant, mischievous, moldering, mordacious, mordant, moxa,
     nervous, noisome, noxious, ominous, out of humor, out of sorts,
     out of temper, penetrating, pernicious, piercing, poignant,
     poisonous, potential cautery, powerful, prejudicial, punchy,
     radium, ravaged, resolvent, ruinous, scatheful, scathing,
     scorching, sensational, separative, sharp, sinewed, sinewy,
     slashing, solvent, stabbing, stinging, striking, strong, tart,
     telling, toxic, trenchant, venenate, veneniferous, venenous,
     venomous, vicious, vigorous, virulent, vital, withering, worn