pointed

English

Pronunciation

• enPR: poinʹtĭd, IPA^(key): /ˈpɔɪntɪd/

• Audio (US):

  (file)

Verb

pointed

1. simple past and past participle of point

Adjective

pointed (comparative more pointed, superlative most pointed)

1. (comparable) Sharp, barbed; not dull.

   The warrior brandished a pointed spear.

2. (comparable) Having a relevance to the matter at hand: pertinent, relevant.
3. (not comparable) In animals, having a coat pattern with points, that is, darkening of the extremities.

   The Siamese is a pointed breed of cat.

4. (comparable, of a comment or inference) Directed negatively at a person or topic.
   • 1863 February 21, “Important from Washington”, in The New York Times:

     Attention has been called to the report in a New-York paper, which has been made the subject of pointed comment […]

   • 2013 June 18, Simon Romero, “Protests Widen as Brazilians Chide Leaders”, in New York Times, retrieved 21 June 2013:

     After a harsh police crackdown last week fueled anger and swelled protests, President Dilma Rousseff, a former guerrilla who was imprisoned under the dictatorship and has now become the target of pointed criticism herself, tried to appease dissenters by embracing their cause on Tuesday.

   • 1910 September 3, “Taft Is Not Pleased by Roosevelt Plan”, in The New York Times:

     President Taft to-day had a pointed comment for the "new nationalism" that his predecessor has been launching in the West.

5. (topology, algebraic topology, of a topological space) That has a named, but otherwise arbitrary, point (called the basepoint) that remains unchanged during subsequent discussion and is kept track of during all operations.

   The class of all pointed spaces forms a category - Top_• - with basepoint preserving continuous maps as morphisms.

6. (dated, of a time) precise, on the dot.
   • 1942, “The Dover Boys at Pimento University” (1:53 from the start), in Chuck Jones, director, Merrie Melodies, spoken by Narrator:

     With their usual punctuality, the boys arrive at the pointed hour of three.

Synonyms

• (sharp): pointy, sharp

Antonyms

• (antonym(s) of “sharp”): blunt

Derived terms

• bullet-pointed
• double-pointed needle
• Earth-pointed
• pointed cabbage
• pointedly
• sharp-pointed
• well-pointed

 

Translations

sharp at one end

• Armenian: սրածայր (hy) (sracayr), սուր (hy) (sur)
• Belarusian: во́стры (be) m (vóstry)
• Bulgarian: остър (bg) (ostǎr), изострен (bg) (izostren)
• Catalan: punxegut
• Finnish: terävä (fi), teroitettu (fi), teräväkärkinen (fi), kärjekäs
• French: pointu (fr) m
• Georgian: წვერიანი (c̣veriani)
• Greek:

  Ancient: ἀκιδωτός (akidōtós)

• Hungarian: hegyes (hu), csúcsos (hu), éles (hu)
• Ingrian: terävä
• Irish: gobach
• Italian: appuntito (it), aguzzo (it), puntuto (it)
• Kabuverdianu: afiadu, afióde
• Khmer: ស្រួច (km) (sruǝc)
• Norman: pointu
• Ottoman Turkish: سیوری (sivri)
• Portuguese: pontudo (pt), apontado (pt)
• Russian: заострённый (ru) sg or m (zaostrjónnyj)
• Sanskrit: तिग्म (sa) (tigma)
• Sicilian: puntutu
• Swedish: spetsig (sv)
• Thai: แหลม (th) (lɛ̌ɛm)
• Turkish: sivri (tr)
• Vietnamese: nhọn (vi)
• Yiddish: שאַרף (sharf), שפּיציק (shpitsik)

of an arch, in architecture — see ogival

Anagrams

• opted in, pitoned