Sardonic \Sar*don"ic\, a.
Of, pertaining to, or resembling, a kind of linen made at
Colchis.
Source: Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913)
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Sardonic \Sar*don"ic\, a. [F. sardonique, L. sardonius, Gr. ?,
?, perhaps fr. ? to grin like a dog, or from a certain plant
of Sardinia, Gr. ?, which was said to screw up the face of
the eater.]
Forced; unnatural; insincere; hence, derisive, mocking,
malignant, or bitterly sarcastic; -- applied only to a laugh,
smile, or some facial semblance of gayety.
Where strained, sardonic smiles are glozing still, And
grief is forced to laugh against her will. --Sir H.
Wotton.
The scornful, ferocious, sardonic grin of a bloody
ruffian. --Burke.
Sardonic grin or laugh, an old medical term for a
spasmodic affection of the muscles of the face, giving it
an appearance of laughter.
Source: Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913)
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