# salient

> English word · Adjective · IPA /ˈseɪ.li.ənt/ · frequency rank #24,889

## Definitions
1. Worthy of note; pertinent or relevant.
2. Prominent; conspicuous.
3. Depicted in a leaping posture.
4. Projecting outwards, pointing outwards.
5. Moving by leaps or springs; jumping.
6. Shooting or springing out; projecting.
7. Denoting any angle less than two right angles.

## Etymology
The heraldic sense “leaping” and the sense “projecting outward” are borrowed from Latin salientem, the accusative form of saliēns (“springing, leaping”), present participle of saliō (“leap, spring”, verb). The senses “prominent” and “pertinent” are relatively recent, and derive from the phrase salient point, which is a calque of the Latin punctum saliēns, a translation of Aristotle's term for the embryonal heart visible in (opened) eggs, which he thought seemed to move already. Compare also the German calque der springende Punkt.

## Easily confused with
- **silent** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/salient-vs-silent)
- **saline** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/salient-vs-saline)
- **salina** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/salient-vs-salina)
- **splint** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/salient-vs-splint)
- **solvent** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/salient-vs-solvent)
- **Sargent** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/salient-vs-sargent)
- **sapiens** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/salient-vs-sapiens)
- **saint** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/saint-vs-salient)

## Common misspellings (10)
`aslient`, `sailent`, `saleint`, `saliennt`, `salientt`, `salietn`, `salinet`, `sallient`, `slaient`, `ssalient`

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/word/salient