as in biting
causing intense discomfort to one's skin
an icy, penetrating rain that made you feel really miserable
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in accessing
to go or come in or into
a needle penetrated the heavy canvas only with great effort
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of penetrating
Jonathon Keats, Discover Magazine, 13 Nov. 2019
Nachmanides takes a different approach and offers perhaps the most penetrating psychological insight.
—Rabbi Avi Weiss, Sun Sentinel, 26 Dec. 2022
Jeffrey Kluger, TIME, 25 Feb. 2025
Ground-penetrating radar aboard the rover measured thick layers of sand, sloping gently upward toward the rocky shore, as if washed up by ocean waves.
—Kiona N. Smith, Space.com, 25 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for penetrating
Adjective
Kamitani is one of the world’s leading experts on the visual cortex, the part of the brain that processes what the eyes see, and fMRI is one of his most penetrating instruments.
—Jonathon Keats, Discover Magazine, 13 Nov. 2019
Nachmanides takes a different approach and offers perhaps the most penetrating psychological insight.
—Rabbi Avi Weiss, Sun Sentinel, 26 Dec. 2022
Verb
The instrument is capable of penetrating up to 330 feet below the surface, but Zhurong did not have to go nearly that deep to hit paydirt.
—Jeffrey Kluger, TIME, 25 Feb. 2025
Ground-penetrating radar aboard the rover measured thick layers of sand, sloping gently upward toward the rocky shore, as if washed up by ocean waves.
—Kiona N. Smith, Space.com, 25 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for penetrating
Recent Examples of Synonyms for penetrating
Adjective
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As always, Danan’s voice is hysterically funny, her characters’ exhibiting a wry and biting sense of humor.—
Maureen Lee Lenker,
EW.com,
19 May 2025
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Fey’s writing usually has a reputation of being more on the biting or sardonic side, but The Four Seasons trades out the eye rolls for loving looks (mostly).—
Tom Smyth,
Vulture,
15 May 2025
Adjective
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But the two mainstays of the game are far from bitter rivals.—
Luca Evans,
Denver Post,
27 June 2025
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Pashinyan was the focus of protests last year by tens of thousands of demonstrators after Armenia agreed to hand over control of several border villages to Azerbaijan and to normalize relations between the neighbors and bitter rivals.—
Avet Demourian,
Los Angeles Times,
27 June 2025
Verb
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Justin previously debuted a nostril piercing almost a decade ago with an Instagram selfie in 2016, according to outlets Cosmopolitan and Refinery29.—
Michelle Lee,
People.com,
31 Mar. 2025
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There was something stark and piercing in me that was much closer to clarity than to muddle, but calling it a muddle took less effort.—
Yiyun Li,
The New Yorker,
23 Mar. 2025
Adjective
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Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi has publicly stated that recent U.S. and Israeli airstrikes inflicted serious damage on Iran's nuclear sites, a sharp contrast to the downplaying by Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei and one early U.S. intelligence assessment that was leaked to media.—
Amir Daftari,
MSNBC Newsweek,
27 June 2025
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It’s measured in sharper thinking, richer conversations, and better decisions.—
Emma Burleigh,
Fortune,
27 June 2025
Verb
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Avoid entering basements or rooms where electrical outlets or cords are submerged in water.—
CA Weather Bot,
Sacramento Bee,
15 Mar. 2025
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Refrain from entering water that may have electricity in it and avoid walking through floodwaters.—
CA Weather Bot,
Sacramento Bee,
15 Mar. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Penetrating.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/penetrating. Accessed 6 Jul. 2025.
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