different between pungent vs ngapi

English

Etymology

Borrowed from Latin pungens (stem pungent-), present participle of pungo (“to sting”).

Pronunciation

• enPR: p?nj?nt, IPA^(key): /?p?nd??nt/

Adjective

pungent (comparative more pungent, superlative most pungent)

1. Having a strong odor that stings the nose, said especially of acidic or spicy substances.

   I accidentally dropped the bottle of ammonia and after few seconds, a very pungent stench could be detected.

   • 1991, Paul Chadwick, Concrete: American Christmas, Dark Horse Books

     I can almost smell the fir scent… resinous, pungent.

2. Having a strong taste that stings the tongue, said especially of hot (spicy) food, which has a strong and sharp or bitter taste.
3. (figuratively) Stinging; acerbic.

   The critic gave a pungent review.

4. (botany) Having a sharp and stiff point.

Derived terms

• pungence
• pungently

Translations

Latin

Verb

pungent

1. third-person plural future active indicative of pung?

English

Alternative forms

• ngapee, nga-pee

Etymology

From Burmese ????? (nga:pi., literally “pressed fish”).

Noun

ngapi (uncountable)

1. (cooking) A pungent Burmese condiment made from fermented and compressed fish or shrimp paste.
   • 1876, "Burmah" in the Encyclopædia Britannica, 9th ed., Vol. IV, p. 552:

     The rivers and lakes abound with fish, from which the inhabitants prepare their favourite condiment of ngapee.

   • 1880, J.H. Titcomb, Personal Recollections of British Burma and Its Church Mission Work in 1878–79, Ch. vii:

     Passing by Henzada, because intending to return thither, we went on to Yangdoon or Nyoungdoon, a large and thriving ports celebrated for its fishing trade. Of this fact we were soon abundantly convinced by the abominable smell of nga-pee, a kind of dried and putrid fish, of which the Burmese are particularly fond; nor by that circumstance alone, for we counted a hundred and twenty large trading vessels anchored along the bank.

   • 1882, James George Scott, The Burman: His Life and Notions, Ch. xxviii: "Nga-pee":

     Travellers on the steamers of the Irrawaddy Flotilla Company are wont to rail in no measured terms at the fish-paste which forms an invariable and obtrusively evident part of the cargo, yet no Burman would think a dinner complete without his modicum of nga-pee, and it is a noteworthy fact that one form of the condiment is of frequent appearance on English dinner-tables in the East, under the name of balachong, a term borrowed from the Straits Settlements, but which designates nothing more nor less than a specially prepared variety of nga-pee.

Hyponyms

• balachong

Translations

References

• Oxford English Dictionary, 3rd ed. "ngapi, n." Oxford University Press (Oxford), 2003.

Anagrams

• aping, ganpi

Ngarrindjeri

Alternative forms

• ngan

Pronoun

ngapi

1. I; the first person singular emphatic personal pronoun.

Swahili

Pronunciation

Adjective

-ngapi (declinable)

1. how many?

Usage notes

Follows the noun and behaves like a normal adjective; for example, nyumba ngapi? ("how many houses?").

Inflection