What does pungent mean?

Definitions for pungent
ˈpʌn dʒəntpun·gent

This dictionary definitions page includes all the possible meanings, example usage and translations of the word pungent.

Princeton's WordNet

  1. pungent, acridadjective

    strong and sharp;"the pungent taste of radishes"

    "the acrid smell of burning rubber"

  2. barbed, biting, nipping, pungent, mordaciousadjective

    capable of wounding

    "a barbed compliment"; "a biting aphorism"; "pungent satire"

Wiktionary

  1. pungentadjective

    Having a strong odor that stings the nose, said especially of acidic or spicy substances.

    The lasagne included plenty of pungent garlic.

  2. pungentadjective

    Having a sharp and stiff point.

    The critic gave a pungent review.

  3. Etymology: From pungens (stem), present participle of pungo.

Samuel Johnson's Dictionary

  1. PUNGENTadjective

    Etymology: pungens, Lat.

    Just where the breath of life his nostrils drew,
    A charge of snuff the wily virgin threw;
    The gnomes direct to ev’ry atom just,
    The pungent grains of titillating dust. Alexander Pope, Ra. of the Lock.

    Do not the sharp and pungent tastes of acids arise from the strong attraction, whereby the acid particles rush upon, and agitate the particles of the tongue. Isaac Newton, Opticks.

    Thou can’st set him on the rack,
    Inclose him in a wooden tow’r,
    With pungent pains on ev’ry side;
    So Regulus in torments dy’d. Jonathan Swift, Miscellanies.

    It consists chiefly a sharp and pungent manner of speech; but partly in a facetious way of jesting. Dryden.

ChatGPT

  1. pungent

    Pungent is an adjective used to describe a strong, sharp, or intense taste or smell. It can also refer to keenly critical or biting commentary or observations.

Webster Dictionary

  1. Pungentverb

    causing a sharp sensation, as of the taste, smell, or feelings; pricking; biting; acrid; as, a pungent spice

  2. Pungentverb

    sharply painful; penetrating; poignant; severe; caustic; stinging

  3. Pungentverb

    prickly-pointed; hard and sharp

Chambers 20th Century Dictionary

  1. Pungent

    pun′jent, adj. sharp: pricking or acrid to taste or smell: keenly touching the mind: painful: keen: sarcastic.—ns. Pun′gency, Pun′gence.—adv. Pun′gently. [L. pungens, -entis, pr.p. of pungĕre, to prick.]

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Numerology

  1. Chaldean Numerology

    The numerical value of pungent in Chaldean Numerology is: 9

  2. Pythagorean Numerology

    The numerical value of pungent in Pythagorean Numerology is: 7

Examples of pungent in a Sentence

  1. Robert Southey:

    If you would be pungent, be brief for it is with words as with sunbeams - the more they are condensed, the deeper they burn.

  2. Louis Aragon:

    Light is meaningful only in relation to darkness, and truth presupposes error. It is these mingled opposites which people our life, which make it pungent, intoxicating. We only exist in terms of this conflict, in the zone where black and white clash.

  3. Phyllis Omido:

    My son was sick but I was also not feeling good. Our eyes at the factory would be watering and the smell from the factory was pungent. It got me thinking about what they were producing there, after I quit, I noticed that people in the environment had the same issues and decided to get people tested.

  4. Jamie Jordan:

    They have a very organic, very pungent and clay-like smell.

  5. Chinese Proverb:

    Sour, sweet, bitter, pungent, all must be tasted.

Popularity rank by frequency of use

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Translations for pungent

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"pungent." Definitions.net. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 22 Dec. 2024. <https://www.definitions.net/definition/pungent>.

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