piercing

adjective pierc·ing \ ˈpir-siŋ \

|Updated on: 11 Jun 2018

Examples: piercing in a Sentence

Definition of piercing

: penetrating: such as

a : loud, shrill

piercing cries

b : perceptive

piercing eyes

c : penetratingly cold : biting

a piercing wind

d : cutting, incisive

piercing sarcasm

—

piercingly

play \ˈpir-siŋ-lē\ adverb

See piercing defined for English-language learners

See piercing defined for kids

Examples of piercing in a Sentence

She looked at me with piercing eyes, and I was suddenly frightened that she knew what I had done.
I tried to avoid his piercing stare.
She felt a piercing sadness when she heard the news.

Recent Examples of piercing from the Web

But the visualization shows the midsection buzz transforming into a more piercing screech to overcome the pump’s din.

— hiroko tabuchi, New York Times, "Near Noisy Oil Fields, Lovesick Birds Change Their Tunes," 13 Mar. 2018
Making her ice blue gaze that much more piercing, glowing skin and a rosy nude pigment (courtesy of Dior’s new Addict Lacquer Plump lip stain in Lovely-D) rounded out the look.

— lauren valenti, Vogue, "Inside Paris Jackson’s Rock 'n' Roll Beauty Diary at the Dior Party in L.A.," 15 Mar. 2018
And when Marjorie Prime, still working out a fraught relationship with her daughter, streams a favorite song of the younger woman's as a peace offering, what unfolds is one of the most piercing moments in movies this year.

— sheri linden, The Hollywood Reporter, "Critic's Notebook: In 'Marjorie Prime,' Lois Smith Gets Her Greatest Screen Role," 27 Nov. 2017
There are no words to describe the piercing loss Winchester felt on the worst day of his life.

— vahe gregorian, kansascity, "Forgiveness and faith buoy Chiefs’ James Winchester through murder of his father," 22 Sep. 2017
One of the first instances of body art practitioners asking to be regulated was in Florida, where a piercing law was enacted in 1999 with input from the industry.

— marsha mercer, Washington Post, "How safe and sanitary is ‘body art’? Laws regulating tattoos, piercing vary widely.," 25 June 2017
But Cornell still emerged as one of alternative-rock’s ultimate heartthrobs for his long, curly hair, fondness for going shirtless and piercing eyes.

— chris macias, sacbee.com, "Why Gen X - and rockers everywhere - are mourning Chris Cornell," 18 May 2017
But his piercing skill was enough to instill fear in the Panamanian soccer team, which responded with brute force in a 1-1 draw with the United States on Tuesday night.

— david waldstein, New York Times, "Christian Pulisic of U.S. Becomes a Target, but Makes His Mark Anyway," 29 Mar. 2017
More muscles and more lustrous hair and more piercing eyes.

— kenzie bryant, Vanities, "Jon Hamm Wants to Prove How Many Beautiful People Are Funny, Too," 19 June 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'piercing.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

First Known Use of piercing

14th century

in the meaning defined above

See Words from the same year

NEW! Time Traveler

piercing Synonyms

piercing

noun

Definition of piercing

: a piece of jewelry (such as a ring or stud) that is attached to pierced flesh

See piercing defined for English-language learners

Examples of piercing in a Sentence

There's a small shop in town where they do tattooing and body piercing.
She got another ear piercing.

Recent Examples of piercing from the Web

Thanks to a generation of dream girls like Britney Spears, Janet Jackson, and Alicia Silverstone, the belly-button piercing was arguably one of the most popular trends of the '90s and early '00s.

— samantha sasso, refinery29.com, "7 Celebrities You Totally Forgot Had Belly-Button Piercings," 5 June 2018
Many attendees showed off their individuality with body art, piercings and hair in a rainbow of colors.

— sarah gish, kansascity, "From taboo to fine art: KC tattoo convention draws hundreds of ink artists and addicts | The Kansas City Star," 26 May 2018
Sean had piercings in his nose and lower lip; Milton was missing some front teeth.

— abdi nor iftin, BostonGlobe.com, "From war-torn Somalia to Maine: An immigrant’s story of hope," 23 May 2018
There will be $13 piercings, as well, with a minimum $7 tip.

— kaila white, azcentral, "Friday the 13th tattoo, piercing deals for April 2018: Where to go in Phoenix area," 12 Apr. 2018
Having tattoos and piercings. Enjoying wine every now and then.

— blake bakkila, Health.com, "This Fitness Blogger Clapped Back at People Who Called Her a ‘Bad Mom’ for Working Out," 5 Apr. 2018
Her piercing wails could be heard inside the courtroom.

— Washington Post, "Alaska jury convicts ex-Arizona lawmaker in shooting death," 11 May 2018
As for the piercing references, those were a bit more personal.

— brooke bobb, Vogue, "Pamela Love Teams Up With Hobo for a Limited Edition Line of Punkish Bags," 16 Apr. 2018
In the latest issue of Paper magazine, Aguilera posed makeup-free and spoke about how she's learned to express herself throughout her career by changing up her look on a regular basis, via new outfits, hair colors, and, of course, piercings.

— andrea park, Allure, "Christina Aguilera Shared Her "Euphoric" Ear Piercing Experience on Instagram," 17 Apr. 2018

First Known Use of piercing

1977

in the meaning defined above

See Words from the same year

NEW! Time Traveler

Other Jewelry Terms

bijou, brilliant, chase, facet, lapidary, paste

PIERCING Defined for English Language Learners

piercing

adjective

Definition of piercing for English Language Learners

: seeming to have the power to see a person's thoughts or feelings
: very loud and high-pitched
: having a strong affect on someone : felt in a very noticeable way

piercing

noun

Definition of piercing for English Language Learners

: the act or practice of decorating your body with jewelry or other objects that are attached directly to your skin
: a hole through part of the body where a piece of jewelry can be attached