Showing results for "piercing"

• present participle of pierce.

piercing

American  

[peer-sing] / ˈpɪər sɪŋ /

adjective

1. loud or shrill, as the quality of a voice.

   Synonyms:

   screeching, strident, grating

2. extremely cold or bitter.

   a piercing wind.

3. appearing to gaze deeply or penetratingly into something.

   piercing eyes.

4. perceptive or aware; acute.

   a piercing mind.

5. sarcastic or caustic; cutting.

   piercing remarks.

6. having an unpleasantly intense quality or effect.

   a piercing drought.

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noun

• piercings
  plural

1. an act or instance of making a hole or opening in something.

   The cleverly engineered design allows for a safe and smooth piercing of the hose for an easy, watertight installation.

2. the practice or technique of puncturing a body part so that jewelry can be inserted.

   The shop is super clean and they're obviously experts in piercing.

3. a hole or opening made by puncturing: An infected navel piercing can usually be treated with antibiotics.

   The five wall piercings were possibly a reference to the Five Holy Wounds of Christ.

   An infected navel piercing can usually be treated with antibiotics.

4. a ring, stud, or other piece of jewelry inserted through a hole in a body part.

   He wears five silver piercings on his ears.

piercing British  

/ ˈpɪəsɪŋ /

adjective

1. (of a sound) sharp and shrill

2. (of eyes or a look) intense and penetrating

3. (of an emotion) strong and deeply affecting

4. (of cold or wind) intense or biting

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noun

1. the art or practice of piercing body parts for the insertion of jewellery

2. an instance of the piercing of a body part

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• piercingness
  noun
• unpiercing
  adjective
• piercingly
  adverb

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• piercings
  plural

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Etymology

Origin of piercing

First recorded in 1375–1425; pierce, -ing ²

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Explanation

Piercing means loud or intense, like the piercing scream of the heroine in a horror movie or the piercing cold of the wind on a frigid February morning. The adjective piercing comes from pierce, which means to poke a hole in something with a sharp object. If you've had your ears pierced, you get the idea. Things that are piercing are figuratively sharp, like a piercing look from an angry teacher, the piercing cold of the ocean, or the piercing sound of your smoke detector. There's also a shrewdness or intelligence that can be described as piercing: "The piercing insight in your book report was impressive."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

piercing piercings

Although further testing would be needed before the technology could become a practical medical product, the finding suggests a possible route toward monitoring blood sugar without repeatedly piercing the skin.

From Science Daily ● Oct. 23, 2026

Ear-piercing chain Rowan is introducing a new store format featuring private piercing suites and higher-end materials.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 16, 2026

That day in January, Lee Arguello was on her couch in the living room, just steps away from the front door, when she heard Vela Gonzalez’s piercing scream.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 8, 2026

In a four-star review, external, the Times noted how Heaton's "casually funny" and "deceptively piercing" latest album "again confirms his gift for dissecting human weakness with an unsentimental but humane eye".

From BBC ● Aug. 28, 2026

The shrieking of its breath rose, piercing, agonizing, reverberating across the hill.

From "Impossible Creatures" by Katherine Rundell

Women in headscarves and long coats share the sidewalk with groups of young men and women in baggy jeans with body piercings and tattoos.

From BBC ● Apr. 23, 2026

How to Trade the War: Avoid Gimmicky Strategies and Overheated Assets Why you ought to consider drastic investing moves the same way you should think about body piercings or tattoos.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 25, 2026

In therapy with Arisu, Niragi still looks almost the same – wearing a busy patterned-shirt, face scarred and with nose and brow piercings.

From Salon ● Sep. 26, 2025

Since his 2017 mixtape debut, Carti has captivated rap fans for the feral intensity of his sound and his Suicide-riffing album art, facial piercings and occult mystique.

From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 17, 2025

Back toward the fish market, she dodged shoppers and weaved through a group of people with piercings.

From "Caterpillar Summer" by Gillian McDunn

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Related Words

• biting
• blaring
• earsplitting
• fierce
• high-pitched
• painful
• penetrating
• shrill

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