[See -ASTER.] A petty or inferior critic. (Used in contempt.)
1684. N. S., Crit. Enq. Edit. Bible, viii. 51. I perceived that note to be added by some Jewish Criticaster.
1810. Southey, in Q. Rev., III. 457. While the criticasters … were pronouncing sentence of condemnation upon it.
1872. Swinburne, Under Microscope, 36. The rancorous and reptile crew of poeticules who decompose into criticasters.
[1896. See WITTICASTER].
Hence Criticasterism, Criticastry, nonce-wds.
1805. Southey, in Robberds, Mem. W. Taylor, II. 87. Whose criticasterisms have long annoyed me.
1887. F. Hall, in Nation (N. Y.), XLIV. 516/1. His criticastry takes no stigmatic note of ‘was being done away.’
