poynaunt
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Middle English[edit]
Alternative forms[edit]
Etymology[edit]
From Anglo-Norman puignant; equivalent to poynen + -ant.
Pronunciation[edit]
Adjective[edit]
poynaunt
- Sour or acidic to the taste.
- c. 1400, Geoffrey Chaucer, “General Prologue”, in The Canterbury Tales, lines 353–354:
- Wo was his cook, but if his ſauce were / Poynaunt and ſhaꝛp, and redy al his geere.
- Woe to his cook, except if his sauce was / sour and sharp, and all his equipment was ready.
- Stabbing; having a sharp, spiky point.
- Causing fright; upsetting, horrifying.
Descendants[edit]
- English: poignant
References[edit]
- “poinaunt, adj.”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007, retrieved 2019-04-24.