| adjective | extremely poisonous or injurious; producing venom “venomous snakes” |
| adjective | infectious; having the ability to cause disease |
| adjective | harsh or corrosive in tone “an acerbic tone piercing otherwise flowery prose” |
| deadliness | noun | the quality of being deadly |
| venom | noun | toxin secreted by animals; secreted by certain snakes and poisonous insects (e.g., spiders and scorpions) |
| virulence | noun | extreme harmfulness (as the capacity of a microorganism to cause disease) |
| virulency | noun | extreme harmfulness (as the capacity of a microorganism to cause disease) |
| acerbity | noun | a rough and bitter manner |
| acridness | noun | the quality of being sharply disagreeable in language or tone |
| acridity | noun | the quality of being sharply disagreeable in language or tone |
| bitterness | noun | a rough and bitter manner |
| vitriol | noun | abusive or venomous language used to express blame or censure or bitter deep-seated ill will |