One way to hold this word: something with a point, pressing into you. Open a jar of vinegar and the smell does not drift over — it goes straight up your nose and pricks. That small sharp pressure is the whole word. Wherever pungent turns up, something is being pricked: the inside of your nose, your tongue, someone's pride after one short remark, or your thumb on the edge of a hard leaf.
可以想成有個尖尖的東西，正在往你身上壓。打開一罐醋，那個味道不是慢慢飄過來的，它直接衝上鼻子，扎你一下。那一下細細的、尖尖的壓力，就是這個字的全部。pungent 出現的地方，一定有什麼被扎到：可能是鼻腔，可能是舌頭，可能是別人聽完一句短評之後的面子，也可能是你摸到硬葉子邊緣的那根手指。
From the word’s history
Borrowed from Latin pungens, from pungo, to sting; it is a doublet of poignant.
資料上寫，這個字借自拉丁文 pungens，來自 pungo，意思就是「刺」，而且和 poignant 是同一個來源的雙生字。所以這個字不是後來才發展出「刺」的感覺——它從頭到尾就是那個字。
Wiktionary etymology for pungent (packet evidence): Borrowed from Latin pungens (stem pungent-), present participle of pungo (to sting). Doublet of poignant.
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