salient

American  

[sey-lee-uhnt, seyl-yuhnt] / ˈseɪ li ənt, ˈseɪl yənt /

adjective

1. prominent or conspicuous.

   salient traits.

   Synonyms:

   remarkable, striking, important

   Antonyms:

   unimportant, inconspicuous

2. projecting or pointing outward.

   a salient angle.

3. leaping or jumping.

   a salient animal.

4. Heraldry. (of a beast) represented as leaping.

   a lion salient.

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noun

1. a salient angle or part, as the central outward-projecting angle of a bastion or an outward projection in a battle line.

2. Physical Geography. a landform that extends out beyond its surroundings, as a spur projecting from the side of a mountain.

salient British  

/ ˈseɪlɪənt /

adjective

1. prominent, conspicuous, or striking

   a salient feature

2. (esp in fortifications) projecting outwards at an angle of less than 180° Compare re-entrant

3. geometry (of an angle) pointing outwards from a polygon and hence less than 180° Compare re-entrant

4. (esp of animals) leaping

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noun

1. military a projection of the forward line into enemy-held territory

2. a salient angle

Other Word Forms

• salience noun
• saliently adverb
• unsalient adjective
• unsaliently adverb

Etymology

Origin of salient

First recorded in 1555–65; from Latin salient-, stem of saliēns “jumping,” present participle of salīre “to spring, jump”

Example Sentences

Supervising banks for reputational risk also diverts “resources from more salient risks without adding material value from a safety and soundness perspective or ensuring greater compliance with the law,” they add.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 8, 2026

In the U.S., where the Treasury has decided to continue to rely on short-term instruments, the risk of rollover is becoming more salient.

From MarketWatch • Mar. 26, 2026

While those families aren’t eligible to vote, Kogan said, their treatment by the federal government could “change the types of issues that are salient in those communities.”

From Salon • Feb. 11, 2026

“Households remember salient price increases — eggs, meat, child care, home repairs — far more vividly than aggregate statistics. These memory effects persist for years or even generations.”

From Los Angeles Times • Jan. 21, 2026

Sedulously, he had once avoided the clusters of boys who haunted the locker rooms with their salient, knowledgeable talk in which his finely honed sense of morality denied him participation.

From "The Great Santini" by Pat Conroy

Related Words

• arresting
• conspicuous
• pertinent
• weighty