Pointed

How to spell pointed

7 letters · 2 syllables

How to pronounce pointed

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does pointed mean?

1. adjectiveHaving a sharp, tapering tip or end.
2. adjectiveExpressed in a sharp or directly critical way, clearly aimed at someone.
3. verbPast tense of point: directed attention or aim toward something by extending a finger or object.

Pointed in a sentence

• adjective

  The pointed roof of the church was visible from the train.

• adjective

  Her pointed silence during the meeting made his discomfort obvious.

• verb

  The guide pointed at the painting and explained its history.

• adjective

  She sketched a fence of pointed wooden stakes.

• adjective

  He made a pointed comment about the missed deadline.

• verb

  She pointed to the exit when the alarm sounded.

Where does pointed come from?

Language of origin: Latin

This word traces back to the Latin pungere, meaning 'to prick' or 'to pierce', whose past participle gave punctum, literally 'a pricked dot' or 'a small hole made by stabbing'. That noun travelled into Old French as 'point', covering both a sharp tip and a dot or moment in time, and English adopted it in the 1200s. The verb 'to point' then grew naturally, and adding the suffix -ed produced 'pointed', describing something tapered to a sharp tip. From there it gained a figurative sense for words that feel sharp or direct, as if they prick the listener. The same pungere root still surfaces in relatives such as 'puncture', 'punctual', and 'pungent', all sharing the idea of a sharp little point.

How the word is built

• point (from Latin punctum: a pricked dot)
• -ed (adjective/past-tense suffix)