This invention discloses highly porous crosslinked functionalized polymers having interconnected cavities and a pore volume greater than 5.6 cc/g in the swollen state and having a capacity to absorb aqueous or organic acidic liquids from its dried state of at least 3 g liquid per gram of polymer. The polymers are generally based on styrene and/or methacrylate compositions and contain various ionic or polar functional groups.