penetration
gb/pˌɛnətɹˈeɪʃən/ us/pˌɛnətɹˈeɪʃən/
B2
English
~ 9200
Senses
0 senses
Noun
B2
action
1
act of entering or passing through
The action of going into or through something, like a wall, the ground, or the air.
Usage pattern:
the penetration of [something] into/through [something]
Common mistake:
Learners sometimes use "penetration" when they mean "entrance" or "doorway" (e.g., *"Go to the penetration of the building"*). "Penetration" is about the action or process of going into or through something, not the physical opening itself.
Synonyms
entry (More general; does not always suggest going through a barrier or resistance.)
|
intrusion (Adds a sense of being unwanted or forced, often with a negative tone.)
Antonyms
resistance (Refers to the opposing force that stops or reduces penetration.)
|
impermeability (Describes something that cannot be penetrated at all.)
Collocations
deep penetration
|limited penetration
|full penetration
|armor penetration
|water penetration
|penetration into enemy territory
Themes
physics
|military
|technology
|environment
|core_vocabulary
|science
Examples
- The bullet showed almost no penetration of the armored glass.
- Better insulation can reduce the penetration of cold air into the house.
- The report measured the penetration of sunlight into the deep ocean.
- Engineers tested the penetration of radio signals through concrete walls.
- Troops attempted rapid penetration of the border defenses at dawn.
Learner examples
- The knife made a small penetration in the wood.
- Rain caused water penetration through the old roof.
- We studied the penetration of light in water in science class.
- The thick door stopped any penetration of sound.
- There was no penetration of the ball into the goal line.
Noun
vulgar
C1
action
2
sexual insertion into the body
The act of putting a sexual body part or object inside another person’s body during sex.
Usage pattern:
sexual penetration of [someone/something]
Common mistake:
Learners may use "penetration" when a more general or polite term like "sex" or "sexual intercourse" is better in everyday conversation. "Penetration" is often legal, medical, or explicit and can sound too graphic in casual speech.
Synonyms
insertion (More clinical and neutral; can be sexual or medical, not only sexual.)
|
intercourse (Refers to the whole sexual act; not limited only to the moment of penetration.)
Antonyms
abstinence (Describes choosing not to engage in sexual acts, including penetration.)
Collocations
sexual penetration
|penetration without consent
|vaginal penetration
|anal penetration
|penetration during intercourse
Themes
sexuality
|health
|body
|relationships
Examples
- The law defines rape as sexual penetration without consent.
- Condoms should be used from the moment of penetration to reduce the risk of infection.
- Some methods of contraception are designed to be effective even before penetration occurs.
- The doctor explained that pain during penetration can have several medical causes.
- Consent must be clear and ongoing for any form of sexual penetration.
Learner examples
- The booklet talked about safe sexual penetration.
- They learned that penetration without consent is a serious crime.
- Some people feel pain during penetration and should see a doctor.
- Condoms are used to make sexual penetration safer.
- The law uses the word penetration in its definition of rape.
Noun
technical
C1
quantity
3
extent a product is used
How many people in a group are using or buying a product or service, compared with how many could use it.
Usage pattern:
[company]'s penetration in [a market/region/segment]
Common mistake:
Learners may confuse "market penetration" with "market entry." "Market entry" is about starting to sell in a market for the first time, while "market penetration" is about how widely used the product is within that market.
Synonyms
reach (Common in marketing; slightly broader, can also refer to how many people see an ad, not only users.)
|
adoption (Focuses on people choosing to start using something, not on the percentage itself.)
Antonyms
nonuse (Refers to people not using a product despite being potential customers.)
|
withdrawal (When a product is taken out of a market, removing its penetration completely.)
Collocations
market penetration
|high penetration
|low penetration
|penetration rate
|smartphone penetration
|expand penetration
Themes
business
|economics
|marketing
|finance
Examples
- Smartphone penetration now exceeds 90 percent in many countries.
- The company aims to double its penetration in the European market within five years.
- Streaming services have reached high penetration among younger consumers.
- Low internet penetration remains a major barrier to online education in rural areas.
- They used discounts to quickly increase penetration in the student segment.
Learner examples
- Mobile phone penetration is very high in this city.
- The bank wants more penetration in the local market.
- Internet penetration is still low in some villages.
- They study market penetration before they launch a new product.
- Good marketing can help increase product penetration.
Noun
technical
C1
action
4
unauthorized or test access to systems
Getting into a computer system or network, usually to test how easy it is to break in.
Usage pattern:
penetration of [a system/network] by [someone]
Common mistake:
Learners may think "penetration" alone always sounds illegal. In IT, "penetration testing" is usually legal and done with permission to find problems.
Synonyms
breach (Common in security; often suggests a serious or harmful break in protection.)
|
intrusion (Highlights the unwanted, illegal, or secret nature of the access.)
Antonyms
protection (Refers to security measures that prevent penetration of systems.)
|
hardening (Technical term for making a system more resistant to penetration.)
Collocations
penetration testing
|penetration test
|network penetration
|system penetration
|attempted penetration
|unauthorized penetration
Themes
technology
|security
|business
|science
Examples
- The security team carried out a penetration test on the company’s servers.
- No successful penetration of the network was detected during the attack.
- Penetration testing helps organizations find weaknesses before hackers do.
- They hired an external firm to attempt penetration of their cloud infrastructure.
- Strict access controls reduced the risk of unauthorized penetration.
Learner examples
- The company did a penetration test on its computers.
- Good passwords can help stop network penetration.
- They work in security and try to prevent system penetration.
- The hacker tried penetration of the bank’s website.
- Penetration testing is an important job in IT security.
Noun
technical
B2
quantity
5
depth or extent of entry
How deep or how far something goes into or through something else.
Usage pattern:
the penetration of [something] to/into [a depth/level]
Common mistake:
Learners may repeat "depth" and "penetration" together in an unnatural way like *"the deep depth of penetration"*. Usually, "depth of penetration" is enough without another word like "deep".
Synonyms
depth (More general; does not always imply movement into something.)
|
reach (Emphasizes how far something extends, not necessarily in a straight line or into a solid material.)
Antonyms
surface level (Implies that something does not go below the outside layer.)
Collocations
depth of penetration
|moderate penetration
|limited penetration
|snow penetration
|heat penetration
|soil penetration
Themes
science
|engineering
|environment
|core_vocabulary
Examples
- The study measured the penetration of tree roots into the soil.
- X-ray penetration was insufficient to see the deepest layers of the rock.
- Heat penetration was greatest near the metal surface.
- Snow penetration made walking extremely difficult for the hikers.
- The coating reduces water penetration to a depth of only a few millimeters.
Learner examples
- The depth of penetration was five centimeters.
- They checked the penetration of water in the wall.
- Heat penetration was not very deep.
- Soil tests showed poor root penetration.
- We measured light penetration in the water.
Noun
formal
C1
property
6
deep mental understanding
The ability to understand ideas or problems very clearly and deeply.
Usage pattern:
[someone]'s penetration into [a subject/problem]
Common mistake:
Learners may overuse this formal sense and create unnatural phrases like *"I have penetration in English"*. In everyday speech, "I understand English well" or "I have a deep understanding of English" is more natural.
Synonyms
insight (More common; often sounds warmer and more personal than "penetration.")
|
acuity (Formal; suggests sharpness of mind or senses.)
Antonyms
superficiality (Describes only shallow understanding or analysis.)
|
confusion (Lack of clear or accurate understanding.)
Collocations
intellectual penetration
|remarkable penetration
|great penetration
|penetration into the problem
|critical penetration
|penetration of the author’s analysis
Themes
thinking
|communication
|academia
|core_vocabulary
|education
Examples
- Her book shows real penetration into the causes of social inequality.
- The critic praised the film for its psychological penetration.
- Despite its length, the report lacks penetration and clear insight.
- He spoke with unusual penetration about the country’s political crisis.
- The essay combines stylistic elegance with intellectual penetration.
Learner examples
- The writer shows great penetration into human feelings.
- His comments on the film had real penetration.
- The study has detail but little penetration.
- She answered the question with surprising penetration for her age.
- The teacher liked the penetration in his essay.
Noun
formal
C2
property
7
ability of sound/light/smell to carry
How well a sound, light, or smell can go through space or things and still be clear.
Usage pattern:
the penetration of [a sound/light/smell] through [something]
Common mistake:
Learners rarely use this sense and may instead say "strong" or "loud" when "penetration" would be more precise, especially in formal descriptions of sound or light.
Synonyms
carry (In phrases like "the sound carries"; more informal and focused on distance.)
|
intensity (Refers to strength, but not specifically to going through obstacles.)
Antonyms
muffledness (Describes sound that is blocked or unclear instead of penetrating.)
|
dimness (Describes weak light that does not penetrate well.)
Collocations
the penetration of her voice
|the penetration of the smell
|the penetration of the light
|lacking penetration
|strong penetration
Themes
senses
|music
|environment
|science
|core_vocabulary
Examples
- The penetration of her voice cut through the noise of the crowd.
- Fog reduces the penetration of car headlights.
- The penetration of the chemical smell made it hard to stay in the room.
- Due to poor penetration, the alarm could not be heard outside the building.
- Designers adjusted the speakers to improve the penetration of high frequencies.
Learner examples
- The penetration of his voice filled the room.
- Thick curtains reduced the penetration of light.
- The strong smell had great penetration in the small house.
- The teacher wanted more penetration in the singer’s high notes.
- The fog was heavy and cut the penetration of the lights.
Grammar
Dictionary form
penetration
IPA
GB/pˌɛnətɹˈeɪʃən/
US/pˌɛnətɹˈeɪʃən/
Syllables & stress
pen - et - ra - tion (4 syllables)
Stress on 3rd syllable (ra)
Word forms
Noun
- Base: penetration
- Plural: penetration, penetrations
Word family
Forms
penetrations
noun
Core family
penetrate
verb B2
penetrating
adjective
Related words
penetrable
adjective
Negative and opposite forms
impenetrable
adjective C1
Advanced or less common
penetrative
adjective
Expressions
armor penetration
1/ˈɑɹmɚ pˌɛnətɹˈeɪʃən/
fixed phrase
technical
weapon’s ability to pierce armor
How well a bullet, shell, or other weapon can go through armor or strong protective material.
Examples
- The new ammunition offers much better armor penetration.
- In the game, you need a weapon with higher armor penetration to defeat tanks.
- They tested the armor penetration of different types of bullets.
internet penetration
1/ˈɪntɚnˌɛt pˌɛnətɹˈeɪʃən/
fixed phrase
technical
how many people use internet
How many people in a country or area use the internet, compared with the total number of people there.
Examples
- Internet penetration has risen sharply in rural areas.
- Low internet penetration is a major challenge for online learning.
- The report compares internet penetration across different regions.
market penetration
1/mˈɑɹkɪt pˌɛnətɹˈeɪʃən/
fixed phrase
technical
how widely a product is used
How many people in a group are using or buying a product, compared with all the people who could use or buy it.
Examples
- Market penetration for electric cars is still relatively low in this region.
- The company focused on increasing market penetration before raising prices.
- They track market penetration to see how successful the new app is.
mobile phone penetration
1/mˈoʊbəl fˈoʊn pˌɛnətɹˈeɪʃən/
fixed phrase
technical
how many people use mobiles
How many people in a country or area have or use a mobile phone, compared with the total number of people there.
Examples
- Mobile phone penetration is now over 100 percent in some markets, meaning many people have more than one phone.
- High mobile phone penetration has changed how people access the internet.
- The government tracks mobile phone penetration to plan digital services.
penetration pricing
1/pˌɛnətɹˈeɪʃən pɹˈaɪsɪŋ/
fixed phrase
technical
low prices to gain customers
A business plan where a company sets a very low price at first to get many customers quickly.
Examples
- The startup used penetration pricing to enter the crowded market.
- Penetration pricing can build market share but reduce short-term profit.
- They abandoned penetration pricing once they reached their target customer base.
penetration test
1/pˌɛnətɹˈeɪʃən tˈɛst/
fixed phrase
technical
a single security attack test
One security check where experts try to enter a computer system like a hacker would.
Examples
- The penetration test showed that the password system was weak.
- They run at least one penetration test every year.
- After the penetration test, the company updated its firewalls.
penetration testing
1/pˌɛnətɹˈeɪʃən tˈɛstɪŋ/
fixed phrase
technical
security test by simulated attack
Checking how safe a computer system is by trying to hack it in a legal and controlled way.
Examples
- Regular penetration testing is essential for any online bank.
- They hired an external firm to perform penetration testing on their servers.
- Penetration testing revealed several serious security holes.
sexual penetration
1/sˈɛkʃuəl pˌɛnətɹˈeɪʃən/
fixed phrase
vulgar
sexual act of insertion
Putting a sexual body part or object inside another person’s body during sex.
Examples
- The legal definition of rape includes any non-consensual sexual penetration.
- Condoms should be used from the start of sexual penetration.
- Some people experience pain during sexual penetration and need medical advice.