pungent

[puhn-juhnt]

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adjective

sharply affecting the organs of taste or smell, as if by a penetrating power; biting; acrid.
acutely distressing to the feelings or mind; poignant.
caustic, biting, or sharply expressive: pungent remarks.

mentally stimulating or appealing: pungent wit.
Biology. piercing or sharp-pointed.

Origin of pungent

1590–1600; < Latin pungent- (stem of pungēns), present participle of pungere to prick. See poignant, point, -ent

Related formspun·gen·cy, nounpun·gent·ly, adverbnon·pun·gen·cy, nounnon·pun·gent, adjectivenon·pun·gent·ly, adverb

Synonyms for pungent

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1. hot, peppery, piquant, sharp. 3. sarcastic, mordant, cutting; acrimonious, bitter. 4. keen, sharp.

Antonyms for pungent

1. mild, bland. 3. soothing. 4. dull.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words for pungent

spicy, bitter, poignant, piquant, aromatic, peppery, sour, salty, tangy, sharp, acid, acrid, zesty, barbed, scathing, incisive, trenchant, piercing, caustic, telling

Examples from the Web for pungent

Contemporary Examples of pungent

Regardless, that goes double for a hippy isle full of expats and pungent pot known as Bocas del Toro.
A Man, a Plan, a Canal: Panama Turns 100
Bill Schulz
August 17, 2014
Their free clinic in central Athens is housed in a shabby apartment that smells of feverish bodies and pungent medicine.
A Dickensian Christmas For Greece’s New Poor
Barbie Latza Nadeau
December 22, 2013
On move-in day I opened the front door to a pungent, musky odor of pure mold.
George Washington University’s Housing Horrors
Miranda Green
August 21, 2013
Women who use the pungent coverup make less money than fully topless dancers, but many seem to prefer the alternative.
A License to Strip? Texas Dancers Say No Thanks
Rachel Krantz
January 9, 2013
New hires are also warned not to wear perfume or aftershave that is too pungent.
Juiciest Bits From the Royal Exposé
Tom Sykes
October 31, 2011

Historical Examples of pungent

This conduct bespeaks the most pungent and unaffected sorrow.
Female Scripture Biographies, Vol. II
Francis Augustus Cox
It burns like oil, is of a pungent scent, and a blackish color.
Scientific American Supplement, No. 497, July 11, 1885
Various
The insipid odour of the meat, the pungent smell of the tripe exasperated him.
The Fat and the Thin
Emile Zola
In all plants which I have found the odor is somewhat strong and the taste is pungent.
The Mushroom, Edible and Otherwise
M. E. Hard
The air was thick with the odor of raw blood and pungent with ozone.
The Martian Cabal
Roman Frederick Starzl

British Dictionary definitions for pungent

pungent

adjective

having an acrid smell or sharp bitter flavour
(of wit, satire, etc) biting; caustic
biology ending in a sharp pointa pungent leaf

Derived Formspungency, nounpungently, adverb

Word Origin for pungent

C16: from Latin pungens piercing, from pungere to prick

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

Word Origin and History for pungent

adj.

1590s, "sharp, poignant" (of pain or grief), from Latin pungentem (nominative pungens), present participle of pungere "to prick, pierce, sting," figuratively, "to vex, grieve, trouble, afflict," related to pugnus "fist" (see pugnacious). Meaning "having powerful odor or taste" first recorded 1660s. Literal sense "sharp, pointed" (c.1600) is very rare in English, mostly limited to botany. Middle English and early Modern English also had a now-obsolete verb punge "to prick, pierce; to smart, cause to sting," from Latin pungere. Related: Pungently.