poignant

(poin'yənt)
adj.

1. 1. Profoundly moving; touching: a poignant memory. See synonyms at moving.
   2. Physically painful: "Keen, poignant agonies seemed to shoot from his neck downward" (Ambrose Bierce).
   3. Keenly distressing to the mind or feelings: poignant anxiety.
2. Piercing; incisive: poignant criticism.
3. 1. Neat, skillful, and to the point: poignant illustrations supplementing the text.
   2. Astute and pertinent; relevant: poignant suggestions.
4. Agreeably intense or stimulating: poignant delight.
5. Archaic.
   1. Sharp or sour to the taste; piquant.
   2. Sharp or pungent to the smell.

[Middle English poinaunt, from Old French poignant, present participle of poindre, to prick, from Latin pungere.]

poignance poign'ance or poign'an·cy n.
poignantly poign'ant·ly adv.

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adjective

1. Exciting a deep, usually somber response: affecting, impressive, moving, stirring, touching. See touch/not touch.
2. Affecting the organs of taste or smell with a strong and often harsh sensation: piquant, pungent, sharp, spicy, zesty. See smells/good smells/bad smells/smell, taste/bad taste.

adj

Definition: affecting, painful
Antonyms: calm, numb, pleasant, soothing, unaffecting

adj

Definition: sharp, bitter
Antonyms: blah, blunt, dull

IN BRIEF: Deeply moving; keen. Also: Severely painful or acute to the spirit.

Smells detonate softly in our memory like poignant land mines hidden under the weedy mass of years. — Diane Ackerman

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For a list of words related to poignant, see:

• Sad, Serious, Pessimistic, or Discontented

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See words rhyming with "poignance."

  See crossword solutions for the clue Poignant.

Dansk (Danish)
adj. - skarp, bitter, intens, gribende, påfaldende, inderlig

Nederlands (Dutch)
schrijnend, aangrijpend, sarcastisch, opwindend, scherp

Français (French)
adj. - poignant

Deutsch (German)
adj. - ergreifend

Ελληνική (Greek)
adj. - δριμύς, οξύς, τσουχτερός, δυνατός, πικάντικος, οδυνηρός, σπαραχτικός

Italiano (Italian)
commovente, tagliente, straziante

Português (Portuguese)
adj. - agudo, pungente, picante

Русский (Russian)
горький, острый, терпкий, трогательный

Español (Spanish)
adj. - conmovedor, patético, profundo, agudo, intenso, mordaz

Svenska (Swedish)
adj. - skarp, genomträngande, djup, bitter, intensiv, pikant, kryddad

中文（简体）(Chinese (Simplified))
浓烈的, 强烈的, 辛辣的, 酸辣的, 深刻的

中文（繁體）(Chinese (Traditional))
adj. - 濃烈的, 強烈的, 辛辣的, 酸辣的, 深刻的

한국어 (Korean)
adj. - 매서운, (맛이) 쓴, 통렬한(아픔따위)

日本語 (Japanese)
adj. - きびしい, 激しい, 強く心に訴える

العربيه (Arabic)
‏(صفه) أليم, مؤلم, مكدر, قابض للصدر‏

עברית (Hebrew)
adj. - ‮פוגע מאד ברגשות, מעורר אהדה, חד, פיקנטי וערב, חריף או עז בטעם ובריח‬

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