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poignant

adj
/ˈpɔɪ.njənt/CA/ˈpɔɪ.nənt/

Etymology

From Middle English poynaunt, poynant, borrowed from Anglo-Norman puignant, poynaunt etc., present participle of poindre (“to prick”), from Latin pungō (“prick”). Doublet of pungent.

  1. derived from pungō
  2. derived from puignant
  3. inherited from poynaunt

Definitions

  1. Sharp-pointed

    Sharp-pointed; keen.

    • His siluer shield, now idle maisterlesse; / His poynant speare, that many made to bleed [...].

  2. Neat

    Neat; eloquent; applicable; relevant.

    • A poignant reply will garner more credence than hours of blown smoke.

  3. Evoking strong mental sensation, to the point of distress

    Evoking strong mental sensation, to the point of distress; emotionally moving.

    • Flipping through his high school yearbook evoked many a poignant memory of yesteryear.
  4. ›+ 3 more definitions

    1. Piquant, pungent.

    2. Incisive

      Incisive; penetrating; piercing.

      • His comments were poignant and witty.

    3. Inducing sharp physical pain.

The neighborhood

Derived

poignance, unpoignant

Vish — recursive loop

No curated loop yet for poignant. Loops are being traced one word at a time while the ingestion pipeline matures.

sense glosses and etymology drawn from English Wiktionary · source · CC-BY-SA