Synonyms of penetrating

penetrating 1 of 2

adjective

ˈpe-nə-ˌtrā-tiŋ 

as in biting

causing intense discomfort to one's skin

an icy, penetrating rain that made you feel really miserable

Synonyms & Similar Words

• biting
• bitter
• sharp
• piercing
• brisk
• stinging
• cutting
• keen
• shrewd
• raw
• smarting
• caustic
• corrosive
• invigorating
• snappy
• needlelike
• prickly
• tingling
• nippy

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• gentle
• mild
• soothing
• balmy

penetrating

2 of 2

verb

present participle of penetrate

as in accessing

to go or come in or into

a needle penetrated the heavy canvas only with great effort

Synonyms & Similar Words

• accessing
• piercing
• entering
• invading
• stepping into
• setting foot in
• infiltrating
• bursting (in or into)
• dropping in
• encroaching
• waltzing (in)
• intruding
• popping (in)
• wandering (into)
• straying (into)
• barging (in)
• breezing (in)
• trespassing
• infringing
• crashing
• gate-crashing

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• leaving
• departing
• exiting

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of penetrating

Adjective

Those pictures are much more penetrating then the pictures of walls with bullet holes. — Washington Post, 3 Dec. 2023

Nachmanides takes a different approach and offers perhaps the most penetrating psychological insight. — Rabbi Avi Weiss, Sun Sentinel, 26 Dec. 2022

Verb

Like Grey, Willis was a petite brunette with penetrating eyes. — Gustavo Turner, HollywoodReporter, 24 July 2026

Aufderheide and Quinn offer a penetrating analysis of the way Kartemquin Films departed from the Griersonian model of documentary filmmaking that predominated in much of the English-speaking world in the 1930s, ‘40s, and ‘50s, and even beyond. — Matthew Carey, Deadline, 21 July 2026