verb tr.: To irritate or to aggravate.
From Latin acerbus (bitter). Ultimately from the Indo-European root ak- (sharp), which is also the source of acrid, vinegar, acid, acute, edge, hammer, heaven, eager, oxygen, mediocre, paragon, acuity, and acidic. Earliest documented use: 1657.
Don Weisbeck; Politically speaking; Weekend Regional (Brooks, Canada); Jan 31, 2013.
See more usage examples of acerbate in Vocabulary.com's dictionary.