TANGY
What does "TANGY" mean?
Having a sharp, pleasantly sour or piquant taste or smell.
Meanings
- Having a strong, sharp, slightly sour flavor or smell. The dressing was bright and tangy with lemon.
Did you know?
- The 'tang' in tangy first meant the sharp metal spike of a knife that sinks into its handle - the sour-sharp taste was named by analogy to that piercing point.
Word origin
From 'tang', a sharp taste or smell, which originally meant the projecting prong of a knife (from Old Norse 'tangi', a point); the 'sharp flavor' sense grew from the idea of a piercing taste.
Remember it
TANGY has a 'twang' to it - the same sharp snap on your tongue as on a plucked string.
A little poem
First the lemon's hiss-
cheeks pull tight, the eyes half-shut,
then the bright wide grin.
haiku
Wordplay
- The knife and the lemon argued over who was sharper. Both had a tang.
What it teaches
A little sharpness wakes the whole dish; flatness is the only flavor no one remembers.
Quick facts
What does TANGY mean?
Having a sharp, pleasantly sour or piquant taste or smell.
Is TANGY a valid word?
Yes — TANGY is one of the answer words in Wordul, the daily word game.
How many letters is TANGY?
TANGY has 5 letters and 2 syllables.
Where does TANGY come from?
From 'tang', a sharp taste or smell, which originally meant the projecting prong of a knife (from Old Norse 'tangi', a point); the 'sharp flavor' sense grew from the idea of a piercing taste.
What can TANGY teach us?
A little sharpness wakes the whole dish; flatness is the only flavor no one remembers.
How players do
Be the first to solve it.