pierced

[peerst] /pɪərst/
adjective
1.
punctured or perforated, as to form a decorative design:
a pendant in pierced copper.
2.
(of the ear) having the lobe punctured, as for earrings.
3.
(of an earring) made to be attached, as by a post or wire, through the hole in a pierced ear lobe.
4.
Heraldry. (of a charge) open at the center to reveal the field:
a lozenge pierced.
Origin
1300-50; Middle English; see pierce, -ed2
Related forms
unpierced, adjective

pierce

[peers] /pɪərs/
verb (used with object), pierced, piercing.
1.
to penetrate into or run through (something), as a sharp, pointed dagger, object, or instrument does.
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.
9.
to sound sharply through (the air, stillness, etc.):
A pistol shot pierced the night.
verb (used without object), pierced, piercing.
10.
to force or make a way into or through something; penetrate:
to pierce to the heart.
Origin
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
Related forms
pierceable, adjective
piercer, noun
unpierceable, adjective
Synonyms
1. enter, puncture. 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. 8. touch, move, strike, thrill.
Examples from the web for pierced
  • Maybe it has something to do with pierced visible body parts, tattoos on the neck and other visible body parts.
  • In less than two heartbeats they pierced the deep wood on the far side of the meadow, leaving a wake of quaking vegetation.
  • As the prisoner was shut inside he or she would be pierced along the length of their body.
  • She then pierced a hole in the center of the pancake with the back of her thumb, and laid it in the skillet.
  • Running his hands up and down the leg, he checked to see if bone splinters had pierced the skin.
  • Eardrums were pierced with a hot wire when infections occurred, as all the antibiotics were saved for wounded soldiers.
  • Seems a multiple-pierced and tattooed lovely in a clingy peach taffeta costume had melted his heart.
  • Sick seems unaffected by the shining needle, even though the steel projectile has pierced him.
  • The chorus was a marvel of focussed pitch and blended tone: in the opening bars, the sopranos immaculately pierced the air.
  • It has pierced the veil of silence that, for decades, has obscured the astounding growth of what can fairly be called plutocracy.
British Dictionary definitions for pierced

pierce

/pɪəs/
verb (mainly transitive)
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 intransitive) 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.
(intransitive) to penetrate or be capable of penetrating: piercing cold
Derived Forms
pierceable, adjective
piercer, noun
Word Origin
C13 percen, from Old French percer, ultimately from Latin pertundere, from per through + tundere to strike

Pierce

/pɪəs/
noun
1.
Franklin. 1804–69, US statesman; 14th president of the US (1853–57)
Word Origin and History for pierced
adj.

c.1400, past participle adjective from pierce (v.).

pierce

v.

late 13c. "make a hole in; force one's way through," from Anglo-French perser, Old French percier "pierce, transfix, drive through" (12c., Modern French percer), probably from Vulgar Latin *pertusiare, frequentative of Latin pertusus, past participle of pertundere "to thrust or bore through," from per- "through" (see per) + tundere "to beat, pound," from PIE *tund-, from root *(s)teu- "to push, strike, knock, beat, thrust" (see obtuse). Related: Pierced; piercing.