trenchant

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for June 6, 2023 is: trenchant \TREN-chunt\ adjective

Trenchant is a formal word that is usually used to describe communication that is notably strong, clear, and perceptive, or in other words, “sharp.”

// The author’s trenchant wit was very evident in the critique she wrote of the much-acclaimed film.

// Trenchant insights made eloquently by the speaker clearly affected many of those in the audience.

[See the entry >](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/trenchant)

Examples:

“Written and directed by Tommy Lee Wallace (a longtime collaborator of Halloween director John Carpenter), the film’s scares touch on ancient witchcraft and computer chips made out of [Stonehenge](https://www.britannica.com/topic/Stonehenge) fragments. The movie also takes some trenchant digs at TV advertising and emphasizes an odd and foreboding atmosphere over cheap shocks.” — David Sims, The Atlantic, 8 Sep. 2021

Did you know?

There’s much to know about the word trenchant, but we’ll cut to the chase. The word trenchant comes from the Anglo-French verb trencher, meaning “to cut.” Hence, a trenchant sword is one with a [keen](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/keen) edge. Nowadays, trenchant mostly describes things that don’t cut deep literally, but that are still felt: a trenchant remark is one that cuts close to the bone, and a trenchant observation is one that cuts to the heart of the matter. In addition to meaning “[caustic](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/caustic)” and “sharply perceptive,” trenchant also carries a sense meaning “very strong, clear, and effective” that may be used, for instance, to describe a persuasive essay written with intellectual rigor. If you find yourself forgetting these “edgy” definitions, you might dig up a familiar relative of trenchant: the noun [trench](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/trench), which refers to a long cut or ditch in the ground.