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

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

• piercingly adverb
• piercingness noun
• unpiercing adjective

Etymology

Origin of piercing

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

Example Sentences

Malinin was among those in the crowd who gave Liu - the alt girl with her iconic halo hair and lip piercing - a standing ovation as she wrote herself into Olympic folklore.

From BBC

With blonde horizontal stripes dyed into her black hair and a piercing in her upper lip, the 20-year-old Liu is putting an alternative spin on figure skating.

From Los Angeles Times

In “Borgen,” he portrayed a Greenlandic minister with piercing blue eyes who wants to use the income from a fictional new oil find to accelerate the island’s quest for independence.

From The Wall Street Journal

And Sheba was huge, her nose long and pointed, her hair greasy gray tails swinging like thick ropes around her grinning face, her eyes red and piercing.

From Literature

She had deep brown skin and a diamond piercing on her nose.

From Literature

Related Words

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