penetrate
verb (used with object)
to pierce or pass into or through.
was penetrating
-
past progressiveof penetrate.past progressive
Used to describe an ongoing action or continuous state that was happening at a specific time in the past.
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.
Cold weather was penetrating the city, but that did not stop the musicians from going out to earn their keep.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 26, 2020
Ms. Li’s percussion playing was as deft as her singing was penetrating.
From New York Times ● Aug. 21, 2014
“I was penetrating, guys were open on the wings. That’s my job if they sunk in. I don’t care about shots.”
From New York Times ● Apr. 8, 2014
Doors were slowly opening to women even at the flagship seminary in Louisville, and scholarship in fields like archeology, linguistics and the natural sciences was penetrating and changing theology discussions.
From Salon ● Jul. 11, 2012
He had turned away from Richmond, and now, for the first time during the war, a Confederate army was penetrating into the North, into Shadrach’s home state of Pennsylvania.
From "Across Five Aprils" by Irene Hunt
