pointed

/ˈpɔɪntɪd//ˈpɔɪnɪd/

pointed is the simple past and past participle of point.

Adjective

pointed (comparative more pointed, superlative most pointed)

(comparable) Sharp, barbed; not dull.
- The warrior brandished a pointed spear.
Synonyms:

pointy, sharp
(in-compounds) Having a certain number of points.
- a five-pointed star
(comparable) Having a relevance to the matter at hand: pertinent, relevant.
(not comparable) In animals, having a coat pattern with points, that is, darkening of the extremities.
- The Siamese is a pointed breed of cat.
(comparable) Directed negatively at a person or topic.
- a pointed remark
- Attention has been called to the report in a New-York paper, which has been made the subject of pointed comment […]1863 February 21, “Important from Washington”, in The New York Times
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.
(dated) precise, on the dot.
- With their usual punctuality, the boys arrive at the pointed hour of three.1942, “The Dover Boys at Pimento University” (1:53 from the start), in Chuck Jones, director, Merrie Melodies, spoken by Narrator

point (third-person singular simple present points, present participle pointing, simple past and past participle pointed)

(intransitive) To extend the index finger in the direction of something in order to show where it is or to draw attention to it.
- It's rude to point at other people.
(intransitive) To draw attention to something or indicate a direction.
- The arrow of a compass points north
(intransitive) To face in a particular direction.
(figuratively, sometimes, transitive) To direct toward an object; to aim.
- to point a gun at a wolf, or a cannon at a fort
To give a point to; to sharpen; to cut, forge, grind, or file to an acute end.
- to point a dart, a pencil, or (figuratively) a moral
(intransitive) To indicate a probability of something.
- Tens of thousands of Portuguese, Greek and Irish people have left their homelands this year, many heading for the southern hemisphere. Anecdotal evidence points to the same happening in Spain and Italy.2011 December 21, Helen Pidd, “Europeans migrate south as continent drifts deeper into crisis”, in the Guardian

comparative	more pointed
superlative	most pointed

What does pointed mean?: Pointed means sharp, barbed; not dull.
What is pointed the simple past and past participle of?: Pointed is the simple past and past participle of point.
What part of speech is pointed?: Pointed is an adjective.
How do you pronounce pointed?: Pointed is pronounced /ˈpɔɪntɪd/.

Adapted from Wiktionary: pointed (page history and authors); point (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

Last updated: 2026-09-02

Pronunciation audio from Wikimedia Commons, each file under its own free license: en-us-pointed.ogg.

Cite this entry: “pointed.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/pointed. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.