Definition of "penetrate" in English

verb

1. To enter into; to make way into the interior of; to pierce.

   • Light penetrates darkness.

2. (figuratively) To achieve understanding of, despite some obstacle; to comprehend; to understand.

   • I could not penetrate Burke's opaque rhetoric.

3. To affect profoundly through the senses or feelings; to move deeply.

   • to penetrate one's heart with pity

4. To infiltrate an enemy to gather intelligence.

5. To insert the penis into an orifice, such as a vagina, mouth, or anus.

   • a male elephant comes up and penetrates the female

6. (chess) To move a piece past the defending pieces of one's opponent.