From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishpungentpun‧gent /ˈpʌndʒənt/ adjective 1 STRONG TASTE OR SMELLhaving a strong taste or smellpungent smell/aroma/odour etc the pungent odour of garlic2 ALCRITICIZE formal pungent speech or writing is clever and direct, and usually criticizes someone or something strongly He expressed some fairly pungent criticisms. —pungently adverb —pungency noun [uncountable]
Examples from the Corpus
pungent• The onion smell still lingered, sharp and pungent.• Saturated hydrocarbons can burn to aldehydes, alcohols to organic acids, and aromatics to unsaturated compounds which are pungent and irritating.• Garlic has a pungent aroma.• Borsky made several pungent comments about the government.• The rider delivered some loud, bitter and pungent comments, and people shook their heads at the girl.• Pungent diesel fumes poured from the back of the truck.• The squid is tender and dressed in a pungent fishy sauce with a hint of nuttiness.• Oregano is a pungent herb, overpowering if used alone.• A pungent metallic smoke filled the air.• The pungent oil smoke wafts across the grandstand.• the pungent smell of onions• And I smelled the pungent stickiness of the glue when I pasted the labels on the matchboxes, table, and chairs.pungent smell/aroma/odour etc• My favourite was the lightly spiced Cape Malay Rooibos Chai which had a pungent smell and dark colour.• A fox earth can be located from a considerable distance downwind by the pungent smell given off.• Woodsmoke and the pungent aroma of apples and Michaelmas daisies spiced the dusk.• They couldn't detect the smell of cocaine through the more pungent odour of coffee.• It was a creepy spot with a strong pungent smell of garlic and there was always a feeling of tension and foreboding.• Candles flickered, incense burned in an unsuccessful attempt to cover the pungent smell of marijuana.• Singed needles only add to the celebration because they crackle like sparklers and give off the pungent aroma of the evergreen woods.• The room smelt stale and musty with the pungent odour of the fat tallow candles placed on the desk.Origin pungent (1500-1600) Latin present participle of pungere “to prick, sting” 