poignant
poign·ant/ˈpɔɪ.njənt/adjective
poignant is spelled P-O-I-G-N-A-N-T: 8 letters and 2 syllables (poign·ant). It appears 1.9 times per million words in written English, the 20,356th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As an adjective, poignant means “Neat; eloquent; applicable; relevant” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in poignant?
| Letters | 8: P-O-I-G-N-A-N-T |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2: poign·ant |
| In writing | 1.9 times per million words; the 20,356th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How common is poignant?
Poignant appears 1.9 times per million words in written English, the 20,356th most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce poignant?
- US /ˈpɔɪ.njənt/
- US [ˈpɔɪɲ.ənt]
- /ˈpɔɪ.nənt/
Poignant has 2 syllables, split poign·ant in writing.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: En-us-poignant.ogg, En-au-poignant.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of poignant
- more poignant comparative
- most poignant superlative
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does poignant mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
adjective
- 1
obsoleteSharp-pointed; keen.
- 2
Neat; eloquent; applicable; relevant.
A poignant reply will garner more credence than hours of blown smoke.
- 3
Evoking strong mental sensation, to the point of distress; emotionally moving.
Flipping through his high school yearbook evoked many a poignant memory of yesteryear.
- 4
Piquant, pungent.
- 5
Incisive; penetrating; piercing.
His comments were poignant and witty.
- 6
UKdatedInducing sharp physical pain.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Poignant in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| German | spitz, zugespitzt , treffend, zutreffend, relevant , ergreifend |
| Portuguese | pontiagudo , claro, eloquente, penetrante , pungente, emocionante |
| Spanish | puntiagudo, punzocortante, cortopunzante , mordaz, tajante |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does poignant come from?
From Middle English poynaunt, poynant, borrowed from Anglo-Norman puignant, poynaunt etc., present participle of poindre (“to prick”), from Latin pungō (“prick”). Doublet of pungent.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).