noun
- any material or substance used for grinding, polishing, etc., as emery, pumice, or sandpaper.
adjective
- tending to abrade; causing abrasion; abrading.
- tending to annoy or cause ill will; overly aggressive: an abrasive personality.
noun
- a substance or material such as sandpaper, pumice, or emery, used for cleaning, grinding, smoothing, or polishing
adjective
- causing abrasion; grating; rough
- irritating in manner or personality; causing tension or annoyance
“an abrasive substance,” 1853, from abrasive (adj.).
1805, from Latin abras-, past participle stem of abradere (see abrasion) + -ive. Figurative sense of “tending to provoke anger” is first recorded 1925. Related: Abrasively; abrasiveness.
adj.
- Causing abrasion.
n.
- A material used to produce abrasion.