Poignant

poignant
    adj 1: arousing affect; "the homecoming of the released hostages
           was an affecting scene"; "poignant grief cannot endure
           forever"; "his gratitude was simple and touching" [syn:
           {affecting}, {poignant}, {touching}]
    2: keenly distressing to the mind or feelings; "poignant
       anxiety"
    

Poignant \Poign"ant\, a. [F., p. pr. of poindre to sting, fr. L.
   pungere to prick, sting. See {Pungent}.]
   1. Pricking; piercing; sharp; pungent. "His poignant spear."
      --Spenser. "Poynaunt sauce." --Chaucer.
      [1913 Webster]

   2. Fig.: Pointed; keen; satirical.
      [1913 Webster]

            His wit . . . became more lively and poignant. --Sir
                                                  W. Scott.
      [1913 Webster]
    

162 Moby Thesaurus words for "poignant":
      absorbing, acerbic, acid, acidulous, acrid, acrimonious, acute,
      affecting, afflictive, agitating, agonizing, asperous, astringent,
      atrocious, barbed, biting, bitter, bleak, blue, caustic, cheerless,
      comfortless, corrosive, cramping, cruel, cutting, deep, deep-felt,
      deepgoing, deplorable, depressing, depressive, disastrous,
      discomforting, dismal, dismaying, distressful, distressing,
      disturbing, dolorific, dolorogenic, dolorous, double-edged,
      dramatic, dreary, driving, earnest, edged, effective, emotional,
      escharotic, excruciating, exquisite, extreme, fierce, forceful,
      forcible, gnawing, grave, grievous, griping, gutsy, hard,
      harrowing, harsh, heartfelt, homefelt, hurtful, hurting,
      imperative, impressive, incisive, indelible, intense, irritating,
      joyless, keen, lamentable, lively, melancholy, miserable,
      mordacious, mordant, mournful, moving, nervous, nose-tickling,
      painful, paroxysmal, pathetic, penetrating, peppery, peppy,
      perturbing, pervading, piercing, piquant, piteous, pitiable,
      pitiful, pointed, powerful, profound, punchy, pungent, racking,
      racy, regrettable, rigorous, rough, rueful, sad, saddening,
      sarcastic, sardonic, scathing, sensational, severe, sharp,
      shooting, sincere, sinewed, sinewy, slashing, snappy, sore,
      sorrowful, sour, sparkling, spasmatic, spasmic, spasmodic, spicy,
      spirited, stabbing, stinging, stirring, strident, striking,
      stringent, strong, tart, telling, tormenting, torturous, touching,
      tragic, trenchant, uncomfortable, upsetting, vehement, vigorous,
      violent, virulent, vital, vitriolic, vivacious, vivid, woebegone,
      woeful, wretched, zesty