piercingpierc‧ing1 /ˈpɪəsɪŋ $ ˈpɪr-/ adjective 
There was mockery now in those piercing blue eyes. She felt foolish and unsure under his piercing gaze. He gave her a piercing look.2sound a sound that is piercing is high, sharp, and unpleasant: He grinned and let out a piercing whistle. a piercing scream► see thesaurus at high, loud3wind a piercing wind is very cold4pain causing a lot of pain: She felt a piercing sensation in her arm.5emotion [only before noun] affecting your feelings very deeply in a sad way: a piercing moment of regret—piercingly adverb: It was piercingly cold. She looked at him piercingly.
EXAMPLES FROM OTHER DICTIONARIES
- piercing beams of light
- an icy piercing wind
- He raised his hands and let out a piercing shriek.
- Her voice was nasal and piercing.
- his piercing blue eyes
- Letterman's piercing humor
- Maggie let out a piercing scream as she saw the truck speeding toward her.
- Maggie let out a piercing scream.
- Sammy put his finger and thumb in his mouth and gave a piercing whistle.
- She had a piercing vision of what life would be like without David.
- There came a piercing cry from the back of the cinema.
- Cloudy and unfocused for a moment, his eyes quickly regained their normal piercing clarity.
- From the cinema itself there also came a piercing cry.
- He felt a sudden piercing need to reach out, capture her hand and pull her into his arms.
- Her eyes were a piercing, watery blue.
- Some one screamed, a high shrill piercing noise that caused her to break out in goose pimples.
- The focus of his gaze has a startlingly piercing quality; an intensity that seems to strike at your very core.
- The whistling became louder, more piercing, more painful.
- Then there was a piercing, terrified scream.
THESAURUSsounds
higher than most sounds or voices: · He has a rather high-pitched voice.· Bats make high-pitched squeaks.· the high-pitched whine of a dentist's drill
high and unpleasant: · Her voice became more shrill.· The bird has rather a shrill cry.
extremely high and loud, in a way that is unpleasant: · a piercing scream· Suddenly I heard a piercing whistle.
making very high noises that are not loud: · a squeaky gate· squeaky floorboards· a squeaky little voice
very loud extremely loud and deep in sound: · His remarks received thunderous applause from the audience.
so loud that you cannot hear anything else: · The noise was deafening – like a thousand fireworks going off at one time.· People living near airports suffer the deafening sound of aircraft taking off and landing.
so loud that your ears feel uncomfortable: · He played the music at ear-splitting volume.
extremely loud, high, and unpleasant to hear: · a piercing scream
Longman Language Activatora high sound or voice near the top range of sounds that humans can hear - use this about sounds, voices, or musical notes: · Dogs respond to sounds that are too high for humans to hear.· I was amazed that he could sing such high notes.· He mocked her by repeating what she said in a high, childish voice.
a high-pitched sound or voice is very high, and often unpleasant or annoying to listen to: · Above the music on the radio was an annoying, high-pitched whistle.· I could hear high-pitched laughter coming from the girls' bedroom.
a piercing sound or voice is very high and loud, often with the result that it is unpleasant or painful to listen to: · Sammy put his finger and thumb in his mouth and gave a piercing whistle.· Maggie let out a piercing scream as she saw the truck speeding toward her.
very high, loud, and unexpectedly sharp, often giving the person who hears it a sudden shock: · I was suddenly woken up by the shrill ringing of the telephone.· As Sophie became angry her voice got shriller.
a squeaky sound or voice makes short high sounds, especially because there is something wrong with it: · This door needs oiling - it's very squeaky.· If you have a squeaky little voice, people tend not to listen to your ideas.
music that is tinny is high and unpleasant, especially because it comes from a low quality radio or musical instrument: · The music sounded tinny through the old speakers.· As he neared the park he could hear the tinny music from Joey's radio.
extremely loud a noise that is deafening is so loud that you cannot hear anything else: · Outside there was a deafening crash of thunder.· When she finished speaking, the applause was deafening.
if you play music or have the radio or television on at full volume or at full blast , it is as loud as it can be: · Joey was in his bedroom playing his CDs at full volume.· The radio was on at full blast, and everyone was dancing wildly.
British /at the top of your lungs American shouting as loudly as you can: · George ran after her, shouting, "Stop!" at the top of his lungs.
extremely loud: · thunderous applause: · The announcement was greeted with thunderous applause.
very high and loud, in a way that is painful or unpleasant to listen to: · Sammy put his fingers in his mouth and gave a piercing whistle.piercing shriek/scream/cry etc: · Maggie let out a piercing scream.
extremely loud, unpleasant, and almost painful to hear: · There was an ear-splitting roar as the jets took off.· The noise was ear-splitting as grenades landed all around us.
a high voice · I recognized Juliet's high, excited voice on the phone immediately.
high and often unpleasant or annoying to listen to: · Her voice was clear but rather high-pitched.· The commentary was punctuated by high-pitched giggles.
very high and loud, and unpleasant or painful to listen to: · Her voice was nasal and piercing.· He raised his hands and let out a piercing shriek.· There came a piercing cry from the back of the cinema.
very high and loud and unpleasant to listen to: · As Sophie became angry her voice got shriller.· Sylvie burst out in a shrill laugh before leaving the room.
a squeaky voice keeps changing between being too high and being normal, especially because there is something wrong with your throat: · He's had a throat infection for over a week and his voice has gone squeaky.· a band with a squeaky vocal style
COLLOCATIONS FROM THE ENTRY She felt foolish and unsure under his piercing gaze. He gave her a piercing look.COLLOCATIONS FROM OTHER ENTRIES
1eyes/look literary someone with piercing eyes is looking at you and seems to know what you are thinking: She felt foolish and unsure under his piercing gaze. He gave her a piercing look. (=a look that seems to see what you are thinking)· He fixed the boy with a piercing gaze and waited for his response.
(=with a very high sound)· The sound of gunfire mingled with the shrill screams of the injured.
There was mockery now in those piercing blue eyes. She felt foolish and unsure under his piercing gaze. He gave her a piercing look.2sound a sound that is piercing is high, sharp, and unpleasant: He grinned and let out a piercing whistle. a piercing scream► see thesaurus at high, loud3wind a piercing wind is very cold4pain causing a lot of pain: She felt a piercing sensation in her arm.5emotion [only before noun] affecting your feelings very deeply in a sad way: a piercing moment of regret—piercingly adverb: It was piercingly cold. She looked at him piercingly.