1
as in biting
causing intense discomfort to one's skin
that light sweater will be no match for the piercing wind outside
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in loud
marked by a high volume of sound
the frightened child emitted a piercing shriek that could be heard all over the house
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
1
as in penetrating
to go or come in or into
thoughts of revenge relentlessly pierced her mind
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in drilling
to make a hole or series of holes in
pierced his ears with a needle
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in stabbing
to penetrate or hold (something) with a pointed object
the saber pierced his chest, releasing a spurt of blood
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of piercing
Dwight Garner, New York Times, 14 Apr. 2025
Only Jean-Baptiste could make such a screed so funny, so piercing and so devastating.
—Katie Walsh, Twin Cities, 10 Jan. 2025
ProPublica, 22 Sep. 2025
The movie follows a mercurial woman (Blanchett) with a strange and piercing gift – the ability to see what others most intimately need, often at great personal cost – who sets out on a journey home.
—Anthony D'alessandro, Deadline, 22 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for piercing
Adjective
What spooks Vara is that A.I. writes what are possibly her essay’s most piercing lines.
—Dwight Garner, New York Times, 14 Apr. 2025
Only Jean-Baptiste could make such a screed so funny, so piercing and so devastating.
—Katie Walsh, Twin Cities, 10 Jan. 2025
Verb
Keele rushed out to her own vehicle and floored it, her headlights piercing through the pitch black.
—ProPublica, 22 Sep. 2025
The movie follows a mercurial woman (Blanchett) with a strange and piercing gift – the ability to see what others most intimately need, often at great personal cost – who sets out on a journey home.
—Anthony D'alessandro, Deadline, 22 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for piercing
Recent Examples of Synonyms for piercing
Adjective
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The characters have this sharp, biting, British humor.—
Alex Ritman,
Variety,
28 Aug. 2025
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There’s Bud the biting cat, played by a feline named Tonic and who deserves a three-picture deal.—
David Fear,
Rolling Stone,
28 Aug. 2025
Adjective
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Meet Nashville's new crime-fighting Clydesdale Metro Nashville mounted patrol officer Michael Douglas squeezed a three-foot-long rubber chicken, producing an increasingly louder and closer screeching sound to try and provoke a 1,700-pound Clydesdale named Ross.—
Laura L. Davis,
Nashville Tennessean,
6 Oct. 2025
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At the same time, Mercury and Mars are activating your sector of expansion, meaning your inner philosopher is loud.—
Dossé-Via Trenou,
Refinery29,
5 Oct. 2025
Verb
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The magnesium spray helps keep your Activator Gel moist during session while easing post-workout soreness by penetrating its nutrients deep into the skin.—
Francesca Krempa,
StyleCaster,
4 Oct. 2025
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Try Oribe’s Styling Butter Curl Enhancing Crème, made with olive and avocado oils to attain deeply penetrating hydration.—
Talia Gutierrez,
Glamour,
30 Sep. 2025
Verb
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While cracks and surface defects caused by traffic and environmental stress are easy to spot, detecting micro-cracks and damage in the lower layers still requires drilling and extracting core samples.—
Georgina Jedikovska,
Interesting Engineering,
1 Oct. 2025
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Energy Secretary Chris Wright has argued that the administration is making drilling cheaper by cutting red tape.—
Spencer Kimball,
CNBC,
30 Sep. 2025
Verb
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The brutal stabbing death of Ukrainian refugee Iryna Zarutska on the Charlotte light rail directed attention to his crime policies, as many Republicans squarely blamed Cooper.—
Brady Knox,
The Washington Examiner,
6 Oct. 2025
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As of Monday, suspects have been arrested in the Friday shooting deaths of 18-year-old Jenny Rosales and 28-year-old Chandrashekar Pole, and a suspect has been questioned about the stabbing death of 15-year-old Jacob De La Rosa.—
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
6 Oct. 2025
Adjective
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Seventeen years is pretty old for a bourbon, but in this case the whiskey is not overtaken by bitter tannic oak notes.—
Jonah Flicker,
Robb Report,
5 Oct. 2025
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But the most bitter had to be crooner Eddie Fisher, her fourth husband, who suffered the public humiliation of leaving his wife Debbie Reynolds for her (as well as their daughter Carrie), then getting dumped for Burton.—
Rob Sheffield,
Rolling Stone,
4 Oct. 2025
Adjective
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That was the sound of Blackwell’s game-deciding block, followed by the deafening final eruption from the stands of Allegiant Stadium.—
Dan Wiederer,
New York Times,
29 Sep. 2025
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And now that Survivor 50 has already been cast and filmed, that drumbeat is almost deafening.—
Dalton Ross,
Entertainment Weekly,
18 Sep. 2025
Verb
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Mother Nature may not be quite ready for fall just yet, as highs remain in the 80s entering the first days of October, above average temperatures for this time of year.—
Leo Bertucci,
Louisville Courier Journal,
2 Oct. 2025
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Madrid Content City has already become one of the largest audiovisual hubs in Europe and is now entering phase IV of its expansion, expected to be completed by 2026.—
Georg Szalai,
HollywoodReporter,
1 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Piercing.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/piercing. Accessed 8 Oct. 2025.
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