Both Uses of
pungent
in
A Separate Peace
- No locker room could have more pungent air than Devon's; sweat predominated, but it was richly mingled with smells of paraffin and singed rubber, of soaked wool and liniment, and for those who could interpret it, of exhaustion, lost hope and triumph and bodies battling against each other.
p. 113.7 *pungent = strong smelling
- I went past the Trophy Room, downstairs into the pungent air of the locker room, changed into gym pants, and spent an hour wrestling.
p. 192.7
Definition:
strong smelling or tasting
or much more rarely: anything sharp, painful, or penetrating -- physically or emotionally
or much more rarely: anything sharp, painful, or penetrating -- physically or emotionally
In reference to taste or smell, pungent is more often associated with a strong flavor than a particular flavor. Some associate it with a high level of volatile acidity. Some wine connoisseurs interchange the word pungent with earthy.