Poignant — meaning, pronunciation & more

Definition

arousing affect

keenly distressing to the mind or feelings

Pronunciation

🇺🇸American English

/pˈɔɪnjənt/

🇬🇧British English

/pˈɔɪnjənt/

🇮🇳Indian English

/pˈɔɪnjənt/

2 syllables Say it as /pˈɔɪnjənt/.

Examples

the homecoming of the released hostages was an affecting scene
poignant grief cannot endure forever
his gratitude was simple and touching

Synonyms & Antonyms

Synonyms

affecting touching

Parts of Speech

adjective	arousing affect “the homecoming of the released hostages was an affecting scene”
adjective	keenly distressing to the mind or feelings “poignant anxiety”

Word Forms

poignancy	noun	a quality that arouses emotions (especially pity or sorrow)
poignance	noun	a state of deeply felt distress or sorrow

Around the World

Europe

🇩🇪German

ergreifend

erregenden Affekt

🇪🇸Spanish

conmovedor

despertar afecto

🇮🇹Italian

commovente

suscitare affetto

🇳🇱Dutch

aangrijpend

affect opwekken

🇵🇹Portuguese

comovente

afeto excitante

🇷🇺Russian

острый

возбуждающий аффект

India

🇮🇳Hindi

मार्मिक

उत्तेजक प्रभाव

🇧🇩Bengali

মর্মস্পর্শী

উদ্দীপক প্রভাব

🇮🇳Tamil

கடுமையான

தூண்டுதல் பாதிப்பு

🇮🇳Telugu

పదునైన

ఉత్తేజపరిచే ప్రభావం

🇮🇳Marathi

मार्मिक

उत्तेजक प्रभाव

🇮🇳Gujarati

કરુણ

ઉત્તેજક અસર

🇮🇳Kannada

ಕಟುವಾದ

ಪ್ರಚೋದಿಸುವ ಪರಿಣಾಮ

🇮🇳Malayalam

ഉഗ്രൻ

ഉണർത്തുന്ന സ്വാധീനം

🇮🇳Punjabi

ਮਾਰੂ

ਉਤਸਾਹਿਤ ਪ੍ਰਭਾਵ

🇵🇰Urdu

دلکش

متاثر کن اثر

East & Southeast Asia

🇨🇳Chinese

辛酸的

唤起情感

🇯🇵Japanese

痛ましい

興奮させる感情

🇰🇷Korean

신랄한

감동을 불러일으키는

🇻🇳Vietnamese

thấm thía

tác động kích thích

🇹🇭Thai

สาหัส

ปลุกเร้าผลกระทบ

🇮🇩Indonesian

pedih

membangkitkan pengaruh

🇵🇭Filipino

madamdamin

nakakapukaw na epekto

🇲🇾Malay

pedih

kesan membangkitkan

Middle East

🇸🇦Arabic

مؤثرة

إثارة التأثير

🇮🇷Persian

تکان دهنده

برانگیختن تأثیر

🇹🇷Turkish

dokunaklı

uyandırıcı etki

🇮🇱Hebrew

נוֹקֵב

מעורר השפעה

Test Yourself1 / 3

What is the primary definition of the word 'poignant'?

The primary meaning of 'poignant' is 'arousing affect'.

Which of the following sentences uses the word 'poignant' in a grammatically correct way?

Using 'poignant' in a noun/adjective form makes the first sentence correct.

In which domain is the word 'poignant' most likely to appear as standard vocabulary?

'poignant' is a standard word used primarily in general literature and formal communications.

Community Poll1 / 6

How often do you encounter the word 'poignant' in your daily reading?

Very Often

Occasionally

Rarely

Never

Do you find 'poignant' easy to spell?

Yes, very easy

Somewhat easy

A bit confusing

Extremely hard

In your opinion, does the word 'poignant' have a positive, neutral, or gloomy tone?

Positive

Neutral

Gloomy

Vibrant

Which age group is most likely to use 'poignant' in regular conversations?

Kids (3-12)

Teens (13-19)

Adults (20-60)

Seniors (60+)

How likely are you to use 'poignant' in a professional email?

Very likely

Somewhat likely

Not very likely

Never

Would you classify 'poignant' as formal, casual, or slang?

Formal

Casual

Slang

Archaic

Pick an option to see how others voted