penetrating

(redirected from penetrating power)
Also found in: Thesaurus, Medical.

pen·e·trat·ing

(pĕn′ĭ-trā′tĭng)

adj.

1. Able or seeming to penetrate: The penetrating odor of garlic soon filled the entire apartment.

2. Keenly perceptive or understanding; acute: The lecture provided penetrating insight into foreign affairs.

pen′e·trat′ing·ly adv.

American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

penetrating

(ˈpɛnɪˌtreɪtɪŋ)

adj

tending to or able to penetrate: a penetrating mind; a penetrating voice.

ˈpeneˌtratingly adv

Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014

pen•e•trat•ing

(ˈpɛn ɪˌtreɪ tɪŋ)

adj.

1. able or tending to penetrate; piercing; sharp.

2. acute; discerning: a penetrating remark.

[1590–1600]

ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:

Switch to new thesaurus

Adj.	1.	penetrating - having or demonstrating ability to recognize or draw fine distinctions; "an acute observer of politics and politicians"; "incisive comments"; "icy knifelike reasoning"; "as sharp and incisive as the stroke of a fang"; "penetrating insight"; "frequent penetrative observations" incisive, keen, penetrative, piercing, knifelike, discriminating, acute, sharp perceptive - having the ability to perceive or understand; keen in discernment; "a perceptive eye"; "a perceptive observation"
	2.	penetrating - tending to penetrate; having the power of entering or piercing; "a toxic penetrative spray applied to the surface"; "a cold penetrating wind"; "a penetrating odor" penetrative sharp - having or made by a thin edge or sharp point; suitable for cutting or piercing; "a sharp knife"; "a pencil with a sharp point"

penetrating

adjective

1. sharp, harsh, piercing, carrying, piping, loud, intrusive, strident, shrill, high-pitched, ear-splitting Her voice was nasal and penetrating.
sharp sweet, dull, mild, blunt

2. pungent, biting, strong, powerful, sharp, heady, pervasive, aromatic a most wonderful penetrating smell and taste

3. piercing, cutting, biting, sharp, freezing, fierce, stinging, frosty, bitterly cold, artic A raw, penetrating wind was blowing in off the plain

4. intelligent, quick, sharp, keen, critical, acute, profound, discriminating, shrewd, discerning, astute, perceptive, incisive, sharp-witted, perspicacious, sagacious a penetrating mind
intelligent stupid, dull, shallow, indifferent, apathetic, obtuse, uncomprehending

5. perceptive, searching, sharp, keen, alert, probing, discerning a penetrating stare
perceptive unperceptive

Collins Thesaurus of the English Language – Complete and Unabridged 2nd Edition. 2002 © HarperCollins Publishers 1995, 2002

penetrating

adjective

Possessing or displaying perceptions of great accuracy and sensitivity:

acute, incisive, keen, perceptive, probing, sensitive, sharp, trenchant.

Translations

حادَّهخارِق، نافِذ

pronikavý

gennemborendegennemtrængende

durchdringend

διαπεραστικός

pénétrant

hávær, skarpurnístandi

içe işleyentiz

penetrating

[ˈpenɪtreɪtɪŋ] ADJ [eyes, sound] → penetrante; [mind] → perspicaz

Collins Spanish Dictionary - Complete and Unabridged 8th Edition 2005 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1971, 1988 © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2003, 2005

penetrating

[ˈpɛnətreɪtɪŋ] adj

[gaze] → pénétrant(e); [mind] → pénétrant(e)

[sound] → perçant(e)

Collins English/French Electronic Resource. © HarperCollins Publishers 2005

penetrating

adj

(= perceptive) gaze → durchdringend; insight, person → scharfsinnig; question, analysis → treffend; interview → tief gehend; a penetrating mind → ein scharfer Verstand

(= piercing) cold → durchdringend; light → grell; pain → stechend

Collins German Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged 7th Edition 2005. © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1980 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1997, 1999, 2004, 2005, 2007

penetrating

[ˈpɛnɪˌtreɪtɪŋ] adj (look, sound) → penetrante; (question) → acuto/a; (person, mind) → perspicace

Collins Italian Dictionary 1st Edition © HarperCollins Publishers 1995

penetrate

(ˈpenitreit) verb

to move, go or make a way into, past, or through (something). The bullet penetrated his shoulder; Their minds could not penetrate the mystery.

ˈpenetrating adjective

1. (of a voice, sound etc) loud and clear; easily heard. a penetrating voice.

2. (of a glance, stare etc) hard and searching, as if trying, or able, to see into a person's mind. a penetrating glance.

ˈpenetratingly adverb

ˌpeneˈtration noun

penetrating

a. [as a pain] penetrante, agudo-a.

penetrating

adj penetrante

Mentioned in ?

References in classic literature ?

Thus, in the most brutal and formidable of the soldier class -- creatures almost on a level with women in their lack of intelligence -- it is found that, as they wax in the mental ability necessary to employ their tremendous penetrating power to advantage, so do they wane in the power of penetration itself.

View in context

I believe in the existence of a mammal power fully organised, belonging to the branch of vertebrata, like the whales, the cachalots, or the dolphins, and furnished with a horn of defence of great penetrating power."

View in context

The penetrating power of his mind, acting like a corrosive fluid, had destroyed his ambition, I fancy.

He told me this story of his adventure with many flashes of white teeth and lively glances of black eyes, at first in a sort of anx- ious baby-talk, then, as he acquired the language, with great fluency, but always with that singing, soft, and at the same time vibrating intonation that instilled a strangely penetrating power into the sound of the most familiar English words, as if they had been the words of an unearthly language.

View in context

Yet those same bleared optics had a strange, penetrating power, when it was their owner's purpose to read the human soul.

View in context

One of his favorite devices is a pretense of great humility, which is only a shelter from which he shoots forth incessant and pitiless volleys of ironical raillery, light and innocent in appearance, but irresistible in aim and penetrating power. He has none of the gorgeousness of Ruskin or the titanic strength of Carlyle, but he can be finely eloquent, and he is certainly one of the masters of polished effectiveness.

View in context

"I think they underestimated the ability of the SS and the opposition around Arnhem, and overestimated the penetrating power of the relieving force because they met a lot more opposition than they expected," said Jack.

'Shambles' of Operation Market Garden

The penetrating power of the x-rays is related to the (atomic number) (3) of the material it passes through.

X-ray Focus and Power--Transmissive and Reflective Targets: The target style of the x-ray tube impacts magnification, resolution and quantity

According to Choi, "The Communist Party has complete penetrating power to people's minds through state media...

The explosive politics of K-Pop in Asia

This, jurors heard, would have made the now 29cm (12-inch) weapon fireable with one hand, but decreased the penetrating power of the resulting shot - perhaps accounting for why the two shots to Mrs Cox's head failed to penetrate her skull.

Mair 'used hunting bullets on MP Jo'

They unlock your bow's full penetrating power with added kinetic energy, lower friction and augmented downrange velocity.

2016 Arrow Buyer's Guide

Where other practitioners feel like they are talking to a brick wall when pleading before the Supreme Court, Mendoza's convincing and penetrating power is simply spectacular!