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• pierce
  pierce

  verb (used with object)

  to penetrate into or run through (something), as a sharp, pointed dagger, object, or instrument does.
• Pierce
  Pierce

  noun

  Franklin, 1804–69, 14th president of the U.S. 1853–57.

pierce

¹ American  

[peers] / pɪərs /

verb (used with object)

• pierces,
  present (3rd person singular)
• pierced,
  past participle,  past
• piercing
  present participle

1. to penetrate into or run through (something), as a sharp, pointed dagger, object, or instrument does.

   Synonyms:

   puncture, enter

2. to make a hole or opening in.

3. to bore into or through; tunnel.

4. to perforate.

5. to make (a hole, opening, etc.) by or as by boring or perforating.

6. to make a way or path into or through.

   a road that pierces the dense jungle.

7. to penetrate with the eye or mind; see into or through.

   She couldn't pierce his thoughts.

8. to affect sharply with some sensation or emotion, as of cold, pain, or grief.

   The wind pierced her body. Her words pierced our hearts.

   Synonyms:

   thrill, strike, move, touch

9. to sound sharply through (the air, stillness, etc.).

   A pistol shot pierced the night.

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verb (used without object)

• pierces,
  present (3rd person singular)
• pierced,
  past participle,  past
• piercing
  present participle

1. to force or make a way into or through something; penetrate.

   to pierce to the heart.

Pierce ² American  

[peers] / pɪərs /

noun

1. Franklin, 1804–69, 14th president of the U.S. 1853–57.

2. John Robinson, 1910–2002, U.S. electrical engineer: helped develop communications satellites.

3. a male given name, form of Peter.

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pierce ¹ British  

/ pɪəs /

verb

1. to form or cut (a hole) in (something) with or as if with a sharp instrument

2. to thrust into or penetrate sharply or violently

   the thorn pierced his heel

3. to force (a way, route, etc) through (something)

4. (of light) to shine through or penetrate (darkness)

5. (also intr) to discover or realize (something) suddenly or (of an idea) to become suddenly apparent

6. (of sounds or cries) to sound sharply through (the silence)

7. to move or affect (a person's emotions, bodily feelings, etc) deeply or sharply

   the cold pierced their bones

8. (intr) to penetrate or be capable of penetrating

   piercing cold

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Pierce ² British  

/ pɪəs /

noun

1. Franklin. 1804–69, US statesman; 14th president of the US (1853–57)

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Usage

What does pierce mean? To pierce something is to penetrate or puncture it, usually with something sharp, making a hole in the process. This sense of the word is associated with needles and other thin, sharp objects used to pierce surfaces. To pierce someone’s ear is to make a hole in it with a needle so that an earring can be inserted. This is called a piercing. The word can be used in the context of someone doing the piercing, as in You will need to pierce the skin with this needle, or in the context of an object piercing something, as in The needle pierced the skin. Things that have been pierced can be described with the adjective pierced, as in pierced ears.  Things that pierce aren’t always sharp. Sometimes, things pierce by penetrating with force. For example, bullets and artillery shells that are designed to pierce protective coverings and shields are described as armor-piercing. More broadly, pierce can mean to make a hole, opening, tunnel, or path into or through something, as in The mountain is pierced by a long tunnel.  These literal senses of pierce are the basis of several figurative senses of the word. Pierce can mean to see into or through, as if penetrating something with the eye or mind, as in Her stare pierced my soul. It can also mean to affect intensely or sharply, as in The wind pierced my face or Your writing needs to pierce the reader’s heart. An insult can pierce you in this way—meaning it can cut you deeply. Similarly, shrill sounds can be said to pierce your ears, the air, or the stillness, and light can be said to pierce the darkness. The word piercing can also be used as an adjective to describe things that are intense, penetrating, or sharp in a figurative way, as in a piercing wind, a piercing scream, a piercing stare, or a piercing remark. Example: This tarp is pretty thick, so to pierce it you’ll have to really stab the stake through it forcefully.

Synonym Usage

Pierce, penetrate suggest the action of one object passing through another or making a way through and into another. The terms are used both concretely and figuratively. To pierce is to perforate quickly, as by stabbing; it suggests the use of a sharp, pointed instrument which is impelled by force: to pierce the flesh with a knife; a scream pierces one's ears. Penetrate suggests a slow or difficult movement: No ordinary bullet can penetrate an elephant's hide; to penetrate the depths of one's ignorance.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• piercer
  noun
• pierceable
  adjective
• unpierceable
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Participles

• piercing
  present
• pierced
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• pierce
  simple
• pierces
  simple
• have pierced
  perfect
• has pierced
  perfect
• am piercing
  progressive
• are piercing
  progressive
• is piercing
  progressive
• have been piercing
  perfect progressive
• has been piercing
  perfect progressive

Past

• pierced
  simple
• had pierced
  perfect
• was piercing
  progressive
• were piercing
  progressive
• had been piercing
  perfect progressive

Future

• will pierce
  simple
• will have pierced
  perfect
• will be piercing
  progressive
• will have been piercing
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of pierce

1250–1300; Middle English percen < Old French perc ( i ) er < Vulgar Latin *pertūsiāre, verbal derivative of Latin pertūsus, past participle of pertundere to bore a hole through, perforate, equivalent to per- per- + tundere to strike, beat

Explanation

If something pokes your hand, you will probably look at your hand to see if it pierced the skin. To pierce means to go right through, especially with something sharp. Pierce has several meanings, but they all involve something sharp penetrating something else, like scissors through a plastic bag or a pen through a pocket. You can also pierce confusion by saying something that makes everything clear. Another meaning has to do with sound. Much like a knife, a sharp sound can pierce the silence and a loud, high shriek will pierce your ears.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

pierce Pierce pierces pierced piercing

During charging, tiny tree-like structures called dendrites can grow from the lithium anode, pierce the solid electrolyte, and create internal short circuits.

From Science Daily ● Jul. 10, 2026

Some courts may be less willing to extend trust protections in such cases, though courts do not routinely pierce spendthrift protections simply because the underlying conduct of a beneficiary was wrongful.

From MarketWatch ● Apr. 16, 2026

And grief is unpredictable – it sits there quietly only to rear up suddenly and pierce our hearts.

From BBC ● Dec. 2, 2025

You’re saying this was a situation where just having some rudimentary sense of who pays tariffs and how they work was an actual bonus because it got to pierce through what Sauer was saying.

From Slate ● Nov. 10, 2025

“No. I will not cut my hair,” I say, “or dye it a strange color. Or pierce my face.”

From "Divergent" by Veronica Roth

“It’s taking the government’s supervision and enforcement tools and figuring out how you can use them the way the Reaganites used them,” Pierce said.

From Salon ● Sep. 1, 2026

“The acquisition expands our scale in the Permian Midland Basin, advances our integrated wellhead-to-water strategy and strengthens connectivity across our natural gas and NGL value chain,” said Chief Executive Pierce Norton II.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 31, 2026

“Have you seen the new ‘Thomas Crown Affair’ with Pierce Brosnan?

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 16, 2026

Teenage winger Jeremy Monga may be given playing time in the academy after joining from Leicester, while goalkeeper Pierce Charles and winger Mathys Detourbet both immediately went out on loan after joining.

From BBC ● Aug. 6, 2026

Democratic “dark horse” candidate, Franklin Pierce of New Hampshire, had won election that past November.

From "American Spirits" by Barb Rosenstock

As we talk, on occasion the screeching call of a toucan pierces the quiet, and miles above, the same giant black birds hover menacingly in groups, surveying everything below.

From Slate ● Mar. 30, 2026

Sell oil if it breaks $90, fade the dollar rally if its index pierces 100 and buy the long bond if it hits 5%.

From MarketWatch ● Mar. 6, 2026

Spoken with earnest confusion, McDormand’s line pierces the heart.

From Salon ● Feb. 7, 2026

However, a bright light that illuminates Felix Gold’s site now sometimes pierces the otherwise starlit night sky.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 8, 2025

Aphrodite loved him; the Goddess of Love, who pierces with her shafts the hearts of gods and men alike, was fated herself to suffer that same piercing pain.

From "Mythology: Timeless Tales of Gods and Heroes" by Edith Hamilton

Archaeologists recently uncovered jewelry that included a pierced deer tooth and beads, all carbon dated to around 11,000 years ago.

From Science Daily ● May 20, 2026

And now, your pierced mules are fueling the contemporary rise in “freaky footwear.”

From Los Angeles Times ● May 14, 2026

I struggled to regain my composure after the first shock wave pierced my heart.

From The Wall Street Journal ● May 14, 2026

"I got my ears pierced at Claire's when I was little," Taylor says, adding they now enjoy shopping at places like jewellery chain Lovisa as well.

From BBC ● Apr. 28, 2026

Storm clouds writhed about its flanks; a deep, windless cold flowed from its summit; unimaginably high, it pierced the sky: the Mountain of the World Spirit.

From "Wolf Brother" by Michelle Paver

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

But just then, a piercing pink light appears outside, and a low, opaque mist begins to creep through the seams of your tent.

From Salon ● Aug. 17, 2026

I brace my nervous system for the piercing shriek, let it play like my own little theme song.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 12, 2026

In a fire, any person expects to hear the piercing blare of a smoke alarm, yet not a single detector sounded that night.

From Slate ● Aug. 11, 2026

He gripped the soap bar and his pain reawakened with piercing stings.

From "Healer of the Water Monster" by Brian Young