acridity

plural acridities

1. countableuncountableBitterness or acerbity.
2. countableuncountableAn acrid taste or smell.
3. countablefigurativelyuncountableBitterness in speech or behavior; causticness.

   She was not safe from the acridity of his tongue but at least she need not fear physical violence, which was well within the possibilities for others.

   1925 July – 1926 May, A[rthur] Conan Doyle, “(please specify the chapter number)”, in The Land of Mist (eBook no. 0601351h.html), Australia: Project Gutenberg Australia, published April 2019