criticaster

English

Etymology

From critic +‎ -aster.

Pronunciation

• Audio (US):

  (file)

• Rhymes: -æstə(ɹ)

Noun

criticaster (plural criticasters)

1. A petty or charlatan critic.
   • 1903, Charles Reade, Hard Cash: A Matter-of-fact Romance, page 439:

     [H]e rather overdoes it, and so puzzles his enemies in the play, and certain German criticasters and English mad doctors in the closet, and does not puzzle his bosom friend in the play one bit, nor the pit for whom he was created.

   • 2001, Richard Flanagan, Gould's Book of Fish, Vintage, published 2016, page 53:

     [T]he whys & the wherefores, that's so much waffle for the judges with their black caps & powdered wigs, for the criticasters & their like: guilt, sin, motivation, inspiration, what is good, what is bad—who knows?

Derived terms

• criticasterism
• criticastry

 

Dutch

Etymology

Borrowed from German Kritikaster or Spanish criticastro. Equivalent to criticus +‎ -aster.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˌkri.tiˈkɑs.tər/

• Audio:

  (file)

• Hyphenation: cri‧ti‧cas‧ter
• Rhymes: -ɑstər

Noun

criticaster m (plural criticasters, diminutive criticastertje n)

1. criticaster, uncharitable critic