penetrate
Americanverb (used with object)
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to pierce or pass into or through.
The bullet penetrated the wall. The fog lights penetrated the mist.
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to enter the interior of.
to penetrate a forest.
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to enter and diffuse itself through; permeate.
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to arrive at the truth or meaning of; understand; comprehend.
to penetrate a mystery.
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to obtain a share of (a market).
to penetrate the Canadian coffee market.
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to affect or impress (the mind or feelings) deeply.
- Synonyms:
- touch
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to extend influence, usually peacefully, into the affairs of (another country).
verb (used without object)
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to enter, reach, or pass through something, as by piercing.
We penetrated to the interior of the Kasbah.
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to be diffused through something.
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to understand or read the meaning of something.
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to have a deep effect or impact on someone.
verb
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to find or force a way into or through (something); pierce; enter
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to diffuse through (a substance); permeate
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(tr) to see through
their eyes could not penetrate the fog
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(tr) (of a man) to insert the penis into the vagina of (a woman)
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(tr) to grasp the meaning of (a principle, etc)
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(intr) to be understood
his face lit up as the new idea penetrated
Related Words
See pierce.
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of penetrate
First recorded in 1520–30; from Latin penetrātus “entered the interior of,” past participle of penetrāre “to enter the interior of,” from penet-, variant stem of penitus “deep down” + -āre, infinitive verb suffix, with the vowel change and addition of -r- probably by analogy with intus “inside,” intrāre “to enter” ( see enter ( def. ))
Explanation
To penetrate is to force into or pierce through. If the fog is thick as pea soup, your flashlight won’t penetrate it. If you stubbornly ignore good advice, people might say nothing can penetrate that thick skull of yours. We get penetrate from the Latin word penetrare, which combines penes ("within") and intrare ("to enter"). Penetrate crops up most often to describe entering or permeating. Blaring music penetrated every corner of the dorm and we wondered how anyone could study with that racket. Penetrate can also mean to decipher or understand: "Careful study allowed us to penetrate the mysteries of Pig Latin." Finally — no surprise, given its Latin roots — the word can be used to describe sexual intercourse.
Vocabulary lists containing penetrate
"The Ravine," Vocabulary from the short story
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Tuck Everlasting
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Esperanza Rising
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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.
But once you manage to penetrate the market, that’s when we believe that many changes will come in this cacao sector.
From Barron's • May 14, 2026
Like the asteroid associated with the K-Pg extinction, the impact described in Inferno is portrayed as powerful enough to penetrate deep into the Earth and reshape the planet itself.
From Science Daily • May 11, 2026
Like sunlight, the lamps emit two different types of ultraviolet wavelengths: UVA, which are longer and penetrate more deeply into the skin, and UVB, which are shorter and more easily burn the outer layers.
From Los Angeles Times • May 6, 2026
Prof Jeffery, the UCL neuroscientist, says his studies show that near-infrared light can penetrate right through the body - so the light could reach deeper tissues.
From BBC • May 2, 2026
By the time we covered the walls and windows of the Clark Street room with dark fabrics and draperies, nary a ray of sunlight could penetrate inside.
From "The Detective's Assistant" by Kate Hannigan
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.
