piquant

[ pee-kuhnt, -kahnt, pee-kahnt ]
See synonyms for: piquantpiquancy on Thesaurus.com

adjective
  1. agreeably pungent or sharp in taste or flavor; pleasantly biting or tart: a piquant aspic.

  2. agreeably stimulating, interesting, or attractive: a piquant glance.

  1. of an interestingly provocative or lively character: a piquant wit.

  2. Archaic. sharp or stinging, especially to the feelings.

Origin of piquant

1
First recorded in1515–25; from French: literally, “pricking” (see pique1, -ant); replacing pickante, from Italian piccante

Other words for piquant

Opposites for piquant

Other words from piquant

  • pi·quan·cy, pi·quant·ness, noun
  • pi·quant·ly, adverb

Words Nearby piquant

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How to use piquant in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for piquant

piquant

/ (ˈpiːkənt, -kɑːnt) /


adjective
  1. having an agreeably pungent or tart taste

  2. lively or stimulating to the mind

Origin of piquant

1
C16: from French (literally: prickling), from piquer to prick, goad; see pique 1

Derived forms of piquant

  • piquancy or rare piquantness, noun
  • piquantly, adverb

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012