puissant
Americanadjective
adjective
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of puissant
1400–50; late Middle English < Middle French < Vulgar Latin *possent- (stem of *possēns ), for Latin potent- (stem of potēns ), present participle of posse to be able, have power; see potent 1, -ant
Explanation
Puissant means powerful and in possession of authority, and is often used to describe the political power of someone, like a prince or president. Said the English poet, historian, and arguably puissant scholar John Milton, “Methinks I see in my mind a noble and puissant nation rousing herself like a strong man after sleep, and shaking her invincible locks.” Synonyms for this somewhat rarely used adjective include forcible, mighty, strong, steady, unyielding, and vigorous.
Vocabulary lists containing puissant
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Julius Caesar
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Kai A. Ealy offers a puissant portrayal of Oedipus’ traitorous son Polynecies and Jason Huysman, donning a white suit and cruelly manipulative demeanor, makes a vivid impression as Creon.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 8, 2023
The play, he writes, is “smart, compact and stirring” and “seems destined to have a life as a puissant postscript to Ibsen’s masterwork.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 22, 2017
The Royal Nappy , on the other hand, is focused on the business end of the puissant infant, as you might expect from the chap who brought you The Queen's Knickers and Cinderella's Bum.
From The Guardian ● Jul. 19, 2013
In The Bronx, running with the support of the labor-backed Liberal Party, Republican Joseph F. Periconi won the borough presidency from a hand-picked candidate of Congressman Charles Buckley, most puissant of the Democratic bosses.
From Time Magazine Archive
But 367’s most puissant weapon in this frothy olympiad was the prodigious guzzling powers of Butch Brannon.
From "The Great Santini" by Pat Conroy
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Get a wordDefinitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
