Etymology

pungent

P3U1N1G2E1N1T1

Today it means: Having a strong odor that stings the nose; said especially of acidic or spicy substances. Full definition →

Latin pungens
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The story

  1. Latin · borrowed frompungens
  2. English todaypungent

Borrowed from Latin pungens (stem pungent-), present participle of pungo (“to sting”). Doublet of poignant.

Words from the same roots

Latinpungens all →

pungence

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.