penetration
Americannoun
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penetrations
plural
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the act or power of penetrating.
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mental acuteness, discernment, or insight.
a scholar of rare penetration.
- Synonyms:
- profundity, depth, discrimination, perception, understanding
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the obtaining of a share of a market for some commodity or service.
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the extension, usually peaceful, of the influence of one nation or culture into the affairs of another.
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a military attack that penetrates into enemy territory.
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Gunnery. the depth to which a projectile goes into the target.
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the measure of relative depth of field of a telescope or microscope, especially a binocular microscope.
noun
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the act or an instance of penetrating
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the ability or power to penetrate
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keen insight or perception
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military an offensive manoeuvre that breaks through an enemy's defensive position
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Also called: market penetration. the proportion of the total number of potential purchasers of a product or service who either are aware of its existence or actually buy it
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another name for depth of field
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of penetration
First recorded in 1595–1605, penetration is from the Late Latin word penetrātiōn- (stem of penetrātiō ). See penetrate, -ion
Explanation
Penetration refers to entering or making your way through something. It's also a deep insight. When something penetrates, it’s going through something else, so penetration is an example of this happening. You could talk about the penetration of a jacket by a knife, or the penetration of a fortress by an army. When a basketball team pierces the other team's defenses, it's called penetration. Also, in-depth perception or insight is called penetration. Just like physical penetration goes deep into something, mental penetration implies deep understanding of an idea or situation.
Vocabulary lists containing penetration
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
“Batteries now shift huge amounts of solar power from midday into the evening peak, which is what allows this level of solar penetration in the system.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 31, 2026
AI penetration among American businesses rose to 20.6% in June, an increase of 1.1% compared with last month, according to the U.S.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 1, 2026
But the attack also further revealed the startling US and Israeli intelligence penetration of Iran, a strategic weakness exposed in the 2025 war when Israel killed a succession of key figures in targeted strikes.
From Barron's ● Jul. 1, 2026
The paper is titled "Selective blood-brain barrier penetration and tumor targeting of nitrosylcobalamin in glioblastoma: Pharmacokinetics, tissue distribution, and synergistic activity with trail and temozolomide."
From Science Daily ● Jun. 27, 2026
“You look conscious. Young ladies have great penetration in such matters as these; but I think I may defy even your sagacity, to discover the name of your admirer. This letter is from Mr. Collins.”
From "Pride and Prejudice" by Jane Austen
He later explained that he was using a definition employed by the Border Patrol that defines “operational control” as “the ability to detect, respond and interdict border penetrations in areas deemed as high priority.”
From New York Times ● Jan. 31, 2024
“Little to none, compared to the extensive cyber penetrations and human spying activities,” the former senior intelligence officer told me.
From Slate ● Feb. 8, 2023
Gu had been working as a spy inside the KMT and, when uncovered, defected and revealed large-scale spy penetrations.
From Washington Times ● Jun. 24, 2021
“They were still running penetrations of the U.S. government.”
From Seattle Times ● May 19, 2018
In 1804, and probably in 1805, there were various penetrations of the valley.
From Colonial Expeditions to the Interior of California Central Valley, 1800-1820 Anthropological Records 16(6):239-292, 1958 by Sherburne Friend Cook
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
