Adjacent Words

Poignant definitions

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Webster's 1828 Dictionary

POIGNANT, a. poin'ant. [L. pungere, pungo, to prick.]
1. Sharp; stimulating the organs of taste; as poignant sauce.
2. Pointed; keen; bitter; irritating; satirical; as poignant wit.
3. Severe; piercing; very painful or acute; as poignant pain or grief.

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2005)

adj
1: arousing affect; "the homecoming of the released hostages was an affecting scene"; "poignant grief cannot endure forever"; "his gratitude was simple and touching" [syn: affecting, poignant, touching]
2: keenly distressing to the mind or feelings; "poignant anxiety"

Merriam Webster's

adjective Etymology: Middle English poynaunt, from Anglo-French poinant, poignant, present participle of poindre to prick, sting, from Latin pungere — more at pungent Date: 14th century 1. pungently pervasive <a poignant perfume> 2. a. (1) painfully affecting the feelings ; piercing (2) deeply affecting ; touching b. designed to make an impression ; cutting <poignant satire> 3. a. pleasurably stimulating b. being to the point ; apt Synonyms: see pungent, moving • poignantly adverb

Oxford Reference Dictionary

adj. 1 painfully sharp to the emotions or senses; deeply moving. 2 arousing sympathy. 3 sharp or pungent in taste or smell. 4 pleasantly piquant. Derivatives: poignance n. poignancy n. poignantly adv. Etymology: ME f. OF, pres. part. of poindre prick f. L pungere

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Poignant Poign"ant, a. [F., p. pr. of poindre to sting, fr. L. pungere to prick, sting. See Pungent.] 1. Pricking; piercing; sharp; pungent. ``His poignant spear.'' --Spenser. ``Poynaunt sauce.'' --Chaucer. 2. Fig.: Pointed; keen; satirical. His wit . . . became more lively and poignant. --Sir W. Scott.

Collin's Cobuild Dictionary

Something that is poignant affects you deeply and makes you feel sadness or regret. ...a poignant combination of beautiful surroundings and tragic history. ADJ • poignantly Naomi's mothering experiences are poignantly described in her fiction. ADV: ADV with v, ADV adj

Soule's Dictionary of English Synonyms

a. 1. Sharp, severe, piercing, penetrating, intense, bitter. 2. Pungent, biting, acrid, piquant, sharp, pricking, stinging, mordacious. 3. Keen, pointed, caustic, irritating, bitter, satirical, sarcastic, severe, mordant.

Moby Thesaurus

absorbing, acerbic, acid, acidulous, acrid, acrimonious, acute, affecting, afflictive, agitating, agonizing, asperous, astringent, atrocious, barbed, biting, bitter, bleak, blue, caustic, cheerless, comfortless, corrosive, cramping, cruel, cutting, deep, deep-felt, deepgoing, deplorable, depressing, depressive, disastrous, discomforting, dismal, dismaying, distressful, distressing, disturbing, dolorific, dolorogenic, dolorous, double-edged, dramatic, dreary, driving, earnest, edged, effective, emotional, escharotic, excruciating, exquisite, extreme, fierce, forceful, forcible, gnawing, grave, grievous, griping, gutsy, hard, harrowing, harsh, heartfelt, homefelt, hurtful, hurting, imperative, impressive, incisive, indelible, intense, irritating, joyless, keen, lamentable, lively, melancholy, miserable, mordacious, mordant, mournful, moving, nervous, nose-tickling, painful, paroxysmal, pathetic, penetrating, peppery, peppy, perturbing, pervading, piercing, piquant, piteous, pitiable, pitiful, pointed, powerful, profound, punchy, pungent, racking, racy, regrettable, rigorous, rough, rueful, sad, saddening, sarcastic, sardonic, scathing, sensational, severe, sharp, shooting, sincere, sinewed, sinewy, slashing, snappy, sore, sorrowful, sour, sparkling, spasmatic, spasmic, spasmodic, spicy, spirited, stabbing, stinging, stirring, strident, striking, stringent, strong, tart, telling, tormenting, torturous, touching, tragic, trenchant, uncomfortable, upsetting, vehement, vigorous, violent, virulent, vital, vitriolic, vivacious, vivid, woebegone, woeful, wretched, zesty