penetrate

penetrate
penetrate [{{t}}'penɪtreɪt]
1 transitive verb
(a) (find way into or through → jungle, region) pénétrer dans; (→ blockade, enemy defences) pénétrer;
∎ they penetrated unknown territory ils ont pénétré en territoire inconnu;
∎ it's not easy to penetrate those kinds of social circles il n'est pas facile de s'introduire dans ce genre de milieux
(b) (infiltrate → party, movement) s'infiltrer dans, noyauter;
∎ penetrated by an informer infiltré par un indicateur
(c) (pierce → of missile) percer, transpercer;
∎ the bullet penetrated his right lung la balle lui a perforé le poumon droit
(d) (pass through → of sound, light etc) traverser, transpercer;
∎ the child's cries penetrated the silence les cris de l'enfant déchiraient le silence;
∎ the cold wind penetrated her clothing le vent glacial passait à travers ses vêtements;
∎ the ship's lights failed to penetrate the fog les lumières du bateau ne parvenaient pas à percer le brouillard
(e) (see through → darkness, disguise, mystery) percer;
∎ to penetrate sb's thoughts lire dans les pensées de qn
(f) {{}}Marketing{{}} (market) pénétrer
(g) (sexually) pénétrer
2 intransitive verb
(a) (break through) pénétrer;
∎ the troops penetrated deep into enemy territory les troupes ont pénétré très avant en territoire ennemi
(b) (ideas, beliefs) s'implanter;
∎ the custom has not penetrated to this part of the country cette coutume n'est pas parvenue jusqu'à cette partie du pays
(c) (sink in)
∎ I heard what you said but it didn't penetrate at the time j'ai entendu ce que tu as dit, mais je n'ai pas saisi sur le moment;
∎ I had to explain it to him several times before it finally penetrated j'ai dû le lui expliquer plusieurs fois avant que ça (ne) rentre

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  • Penetrate — Pen e*trate, v. t. [imp. & p. p. {Penetrated}; p. pr. & vb. n. {Penetrating}.] [L. penetratus, p. p. of penetrare to penetrate; akin to penitus inward, inwardly, and perh. to pens with, in the power of, penus store of food, innermost part of a… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • penetrate — pen‧e‧trate [ˈpentreɪt] verb [transitive] MARKETING if a company penetrates a new market or area, it starts selling goods or services in that market or area: • The company has been struggling to penetrate the US market. * * * penetrate UK US… …   Financial and business terms

  • Penetrate — Pen e*trate, v. i. To pass; to make way; to pierce. Also used figuratively. [1913 Webster] Preparing to penetrate to the north and west. J. R. Green. [1913 Webster] Born where Heaven s influence scarce can penetrate. Pope. [1913 Webster] The… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • penetrate — [pen′i trāt΄] vt. penetrated, penetrating [< L penetratus, pp. of penetrare, to pierce into, penetrate < base of penitus, inward, far within (< penus, store of food, storeroom, sanctuary of temple of Vesta < IE base * pen , to feed,… …   English World dictionary

  • penetrate — [v1] pierce; get through physically access, barge in, bayonet, blow in, bore, break in, breeze in, bust in, charge, come, crack, diffuse, drill, drive, eat through, encroach, enter, filter in, force, get in, gore, go through, impale, infiltrate,… …   New thesaurus

  • penetrate — I verb absorb, bore, break into, burst in upon, cut through, empierce, enter, erupt, fill, filter in, flow in, force a passage, give entrance to, go through, gore, imbrue, impale, impregnate, infiltrate, inflow, inject, insert, interfuse, lance,… …   Law dictionary

  • penetrate — early 15c. (implied in penetrable), from L. penetratus, pp. of penetrare to put or get into, enter into, related to penitus within, inmost, penus innermost part of a temple, store of food, penates household gods. Related: Penetrated; penetrating …   Etymology dictionary

  • penetrate — 1 *enter, pierce, probe Analogous words: invade, entrench, encroach, *trespass: *perforate, puncture, bore, prick 2 pervade, impenetrate, interpenetrate, *permeate, impregnate, saturate Analogous words: insert, insinuate, interpolate, introduce:… …   New Dictionary of Synonyms

  • penetrate — ► VERB 1) force a way into or through. 2) infiltrate (an enemy organization or a competitor s market). 3) understand or gain insight into. 4) (penetrating) (of a sound) clearly heard through or above other sounds. 5) (of a man) insert the penis… …   English terms dictionary

  • penetrate — [[t]pe̱nɪtreɪt[/t]] penetrates, penetrating, penetrated 1) VERB If something or someone penetrates a physical object or an area, they succeed in getting into it or passing through it. [V n] X rays can penetrate many objects... [V n] His men had… …   English dictionary

  • penetrate */*/ — UK [ˈpenəˌtreɪt] / US verb Word forms penetrate : present tense I/you/we/they penetrate he/she/it penetrates present participle penetrating past tense penetrated past participle penetrated 1) a) [intransitive/transitive] to get inside an object… …   English dictionary

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