I. sour 1 /saʊə $ saʊr/ BrE AmE adjective
[ Language: Old English ; Origin: sur ]
1 . having a sharp acid taste, like the taste of a ↑ lemon or a fruit that is not ready to be eaten OPP sweet ⇨ bitter :
Rachel sampled the wine. It was sour.
sour cherries
⇨ ↑ sweet-and-sour
2 . milk or other food that is sour is not fresh and has a bad taste
turn/go sour (=become sour)
REGISTER
In everyday English, people usually say milk goes bad or, in British English, goes off , rather than goes sour .
3 . unfriendly or looking bad-tempered
sour look/face/smile etc
Eliza was tall and thin, with a rather sour face.
a sour-faced old man
4 . informal if a relationship or plan turns or goes sour, it becomes less enjoyable, pleasant, or satisfactory:
As time went by, their marriage turned sour.
The meeting ended on a sour note, with neither side able to reach agreement.
5 . sour grapes used to say that someone is pretending that they dislike something because they want it but cannot have it – used to show disapproval
—sourly adverb
—sourness noun [uncountable]
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THESAURUS
▪ bitter having a strong sharp taste that is not sweet, like black coffee without sugar - used especially about chocolate, medicine etc:
The dessert is made with a slightly bitter chocolate.
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Hops give beer its distinctive bitter taste.
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The medicine tasted bitter.
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As the lettuce gets older, the leaves become more bitter.
▪ sharp having a taste that makes your tongue sting slightly:
Rhubarb has quite a sharp taste.
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The cheese has a pleasing colour and a pleasantly sharp flavour.
▪ sour having a usually unpleasant sharp acid taste, like the taste of a lemon, or a fruit that is not ready to be eaten – used especially about fruit, or about liquids that have gone bad:
Some people say that the purpose of the lemon’s sour taste is to stop the fruit being eaten by animals.
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Rachel sampled the wine. It was sour.
▪ acidic very sour – used especially about liquids or things made with fruits such as oranges, lemons, or grapes:
Some fruit juices taste a bit acidic.
▪ tangy having a taste that is pleasantly strong or sharp, and that often tastes a little sweet as well:
The ribs are cooked in a tangy barbecue sauce.
▪ tart having a taste that lacks sweetness – used especially about fruit such as apples, which you need to add sugar to:
The pudding had rather a tart flavour.
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The trees were covered with tart wild plums.
II. sour 2 BrE AmE verb [intransitive and transitive]
1 . if a relationship or someone’s attitude sours, or if something sours it, it becomes unfriendly or unfavourable:
An unhappy childhood has soured her view of life.
2 . if milk sours, or if something sours it, it begins to have an unpleasant sharp taste
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THESAURUS
▪ spoil to have a bad effect on something so that it is much less attractive, enjoyable etc:
New housing developments are spoiling the countryside.
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The bad weather completely spoiled our holiday.
▪ ruin to spoil something completely and permanently:
Using harsh soap to wash your face can ruin your skin.
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The argument ruined the evening for me.
▪ mar written to spoil something by making it less attractive or enjoyable:
His handsome Arab features were marred by a long scar across his face.
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Outbreaks of fighting marred the New Year celebrations.
▪ detract from something to slightly spoil something that is generally very good, beautiful, or impressive:
The huge number of tourists rather detracts from the city’s appeal.
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There were a few minor irritations, but this did not detract from our enjoyment of the holiday.
▪ undermine to spoil something that you have been trying to achieve:
The bombings undermined several months of careful negotiations.
▪ sour to spoil a friendly relationship between people or countries:
The affair has soured relations between the UK and Russia.
▪ poison to spoil a close relationship completely, so that people can no longer trust each other:
Their marriage was poisoned by a terrible dark secret.
▪ mess something up informal to spoil something important or something that has been carefully planned:
If there’s any delay, it will mess up our whole schedule.