trenchant
trenc·hant
adjective
1.
having keenness and forcefulness and penetration in thought, expression, or intellect
- “searching insights”
- “trenchant criticism”
2.
characterized by or full of force and vigor
- “a hard-hitting expose”
- “a trenchant argument”
Origin
Borrowed into Middle English from Old French trenchant, the present participle of trenchier (“to cut”).
Related words
Word family
WordNet 2.1 (Princeton University). Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). CMU Pronouncing Dictionary. WordNet 2.1 Copyright Princeton University. All rights reserved. Wiktionary content is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike Licence.