Penetrating

//ˈpɛnɪtɹeɪtɪŋ// adj, verb

adj, verb ·Common ·High school level

Definitions

Verb
  1. 1
    present participle and gerund of penetrate form-of, gerund, participle, present
Adjective
  1. 1
    Able to pierce or penetrate

    "The skunk produces a penetrating odor."

  2. 2
    Looking deeply into; piercing

    "He had a very penetrating pair of brown eyes."

  3. 3
    Demonstrating acute or keen understanding

    "His novel shows a penetrating insight into the criminal mind."

Adjective
  1. 1
    tending to penetrate; having the power of entering or piercing wordnet
  2. 2
    having or demonstrating ability to recognize or draw fine distinctions wordnet

Synonyms

All synonyms
sharpabsorbingacerbacerbateacerbicacid

Example

More examples

"Tom gave me a penetrating gaze."

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Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.