# acid

Pronunciation: say "A-sid" /ˈæsɪd/

## Noun

1. A corrosive substance capable of burning or dissolving the materials it contacts.
   - Simple: A liquid or chemical strong enough to burn or eat away other materials.
   - _The spilled acid corroded the lab bench within minutes._
   - _Strong acids can dissolve certain metals entirely._
2. A substance characterized by a sour taste.
   - Simple: A substance that tastes sour, like lemon juice or vinegar.
   - _Cooks often add an acid such as lemon juice to balance a rich dish._
   - _The acid in unripe fruit makes your mouth pucker._
3. LSD; a hallucinogenic drug that produces altered perception and vivid sensory distortions. *(slang)*
   - Simple: A powerful illegal drug that causes strong changes in what a person sees and feels.
   - _The band's early shows were fueled by acid and waves of feedback._
   - _She took acid once in college and never tried it again._
4. In chemistry, a compound that releases hydrogen ions, or protons, when it dissolves in water, as defined by Arrhenius.
   - Simple: A chemical that gives off hydrogen ions when it is mixed into water.
   - _Hydrochloric acid releases hydrogen ions the moment it dissolves._
   - _Chemists classify a proton-yielding compound as an acid in water._
8. Any compound that readily donates protons to a base, known in chemistry as a Brønsted acid.
   - Simple: A chemical that easily gives a proton to a base, which is a chemical that takes protons.
   - _In the reaction, the acid donates a proton to ammonia and leaves a chloride ion behind._
   - _Carboxylic compounds donate protons and so behave as acids._
9. In chemistry, any substance able to take up a pair of electrons from another species and so form a covalent bond, as defined by Lewis.
   - Simple: A chemical that takes a pair of electrons from another substance to form a bond.
   - _A Lewis acid takes on an electron pair from a base, forming a covalent bond._
   - _Boron compounds frequently behave as acids by accepting electron pairs._

## Adjective

5. Sour, sharp, or biting to the taste; tart, with the tang of vinegar.
   - Simple: Tasting sour and sharp, like vinegar or lemon.
   - _The sauce turned unpleasantly acid after too much lemon juice._
   - _He detected an acid edge in the unripe apple._
6. Relating to or having the properties of an acid; acidic.
   - Simple: Having to do with an acid, or behaving like one.
   - _The reaction produced an acid solution with a low pH._
   - _Acid rain damaged the forests downwind of the plant._
7. Bitter, sharp, or cutting in temperament or expression; sour-tempered.
   - Simple: Sharp and unkind in the way someone speaks or acts.
   - _The critic's wit could turn acid in an instant._
   - _She shot back an acid retort and walked out._
10. Denoting a musical genre that distorts an existing style as if through a hallucinogenic lens, as in acid house, acid jazz, and acid rock.
   - Simple: Describing a style of music that twists an older style into a strange, dreamlike form.
   - _The DJ built his set around classic acid house tracks._
   - _Acid rock defined much of the late-sixties psychedelic scene._

## Origin

From French acide, from Latin acidus ("sour, acid"), which came from aceō ("I am sour"). It is a doublet of agita and acetic.

Source: DictionaryAI, https://dictionaryai.com/define/acid (written from Wiktionary data, CC BY-SA 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/).