Meanings
plural tartnesses · alternative tartnesse
- countableuncountableThe characteristic of being tart; sharpness of taste.
Synonyms: sourness, bitterness
Synonyms & antonyms
nounThe characteristic of being tart; sharpness of taste.
More synonyms by meaning
nounthe taste experience when vinegar or lemon juice is taken into the mouth
nouna rough and bitter manner
Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.
Origin
- Old Englishteartnes“sharpness, severity, asperity”
- Middle English*tartnesse
- Englishtartness
From Middle English *tartnesse, from Old English teartnes (“sharpness, severity, asperity”), equivalent to tart + -ness.
More words from Middle English, Old English
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Bulgarian тръпчивост
- тръпчивост (trăpčivost)characteristic of being tart
Catalan agresa, agror
- agresacharacteristic of being tart
- agrorcharacteristic of being tart
German Säuerlichkeit, Bitterkeit
- Säuerlichkeitcharacteristic of being tart
- Bitterkeitcharacteristic of being tart
Spanish ácido, sinsabor
- ácidocharacteristic of being tart
- sinsaborcharacteristic of being tart
- agudocharacteristic of being tart
Turkish ekşilik
- ekşilikcharacteristic of being tart
Rhymes & wordplay
Anagrams
Cite this entry
tartness. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/tartness
“tartness.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/tartness. Accessed November 3, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “tartness,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/tartness.
Source: tartness on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.