penetrative

[pen-i-trey-tiv]

adjective

Origin of penetrative

First recorded in 1375–1425; late Middle English word from Medieval Latin word penetrātīvus. See penetrate, -ive

Related formspen·e·tra·tive·ly, adverbpen·e·tra·tive·ness, pen·e·tra·tiv·i·ty

[pen-i-truh-tiv-i-tee] /ˌpɛn ɪ trəˈtɪv ɪ ti/, nounun·pen·e·tra·tive, adjectiveun·pen·e·tra·tive·ly, adverb

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

He has a voice not dissimilar in timbre and penetrative ability to the incredibly annoying comedian Stephen Merchant.
The Addictive Curse of ‘Let’s Plays’
Tom Sykes
November 11, 2014

A penetrative word or a heroic gesture might lose them the day.
Critical Miscellanies (Vol. 1 of 3)
John Morley
The pleading was crafty, and it was penetrative in the avoidance of stress.
The Amazing Marriage, Complete
George Meredith
She had at this another, but a sharper, of her penetrative pauses.
The Shadow of Life
Anne Douglas Sedgwick
Hence the afterthought of the decorative but penetrative ironwork.
The Old Inns of Old England, Volume I (of 2)
Charles G. Harper
As a critic he was penetrative, comprehensive, and impartial.
A Biographical Dictionary of Freethinkers of All Ages and Nations
Joseph Mazzini Wheeler