(a.) Characterized by harshness; grating; shrill\.

absonant acid acidulous acrid acrimonious astringent atonal biting bitter blatant boisterous cacophonous caustic clamorous cracked creaking croaking cutting diaphonic disconsonant discordant disharmonic disharmonious dissonant double-edged edged escharotic fierce flat grating gravelly grinding guttural harsh hoarse husky immelodious incisive inharmonic inharmonious jarring keen loud loudmouthed mordacious mordant multivocal musicless nonmelodious off off-key off-tone openmouthed out of pitch out of tone out of tune penetrating piercing poignant rasping raucous rigorous rough scathing scraping scratching scratchy severe sharp shrill sour squawky stabbing stentorian stertorous stinging strident-voiced stridulant stridulous stringent tart trenchant tuneless unharmonious unmelodious unmusical untunable untuned untuneful vehement violent virulent vitriolic vociferant