---
title: penetrate — school dictionary · trees and pragmatics
description: «penetrate» in the school dictionary: To penetrate something is to go into it or through it, often with effort: the nail penetrated the wood. Every meaning for a pupil with its dependency tree and pragmatics.
---

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# penetrate

<!-- .vintro -->
**Who acts:** nail, Sunlight, X rays, torch, Rain, pitying words · **What happens:** penetrate, be, mean, reach, touch, not penetrate · **To what, where:** something, it, wood, group, market, idea · **Speech:** someone speaks here

<!-- .vabout -->
«penetrate» in the school dictionary: its 4 meanings for a pupil and its 7 examples, every sentence parsed by Mova itself — its syntax tree, a dependency tree in the style of Universal Dependencies, and its pragmatics clause by clause. The word in the dictionary, with its sense in the lessons: [penetrate in the school dictionary](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/dictionaries/school/w/penetrate.md).

## Meaning 1 {#m1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
To penetrate something is to go into it or through it, often with effort: the nail penetrated the wood.

<!-- fold The tree, 19 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:penetrate:m1:1
# text = To penetrate something is to go into it or through it, often with effort: the nail penetrated the wood.
1	To	to	PART	TO	_	2	mark	_	_
2	penetrate	penetrate	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	6	advcl	_	_
3	something	something	PRON	NN	Number=Sing|PronType=Ind	2	obj	_	_
4	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	6	cop	_	_
5	to	to	PART	TO	_	6	mark	_	_
6	go	go	VERB	VB	Mood=Imp|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
7	into	into	ADP	IN	_	8	case	_	_
8	it	it	PRON	PRP	Case=Acc|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	6	obl	_	_
9	or	or	CCONJ	CC	_	11	cc	_	_
10	through	through	ADP	IN	_	11	case	_	_
11	it	it	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	8	conj	_	SpaceAfter=No
12	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	15	punct	_	_
13	often	often	ADV	RB	_	15	advmod	_	_
14	with	with	ADP	IN	_	15	case	_	_
15	effort	effort	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	6	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
16	:	:	PUNCT	:	_	19	punct	_	_
17	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	18	det	_	_
18	nail	nail	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	19	nsubj	_	_
19	penetrated	penetrate	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	6	advcl	_	_
20	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	21	det	_	_
21	wood	wood	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	19	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
22	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	6	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **penetrate** | to-infinitive |  | something |  |  |  |  | vn poke-19 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent something=Patient |
| 2 | **is** | present |  |  |  | it |  | with effort; go *property* | tree rules |
| 3 | **penetrate** | past | the nail | the wood |  |  |  |  | vn poke-19 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent wood=Patient |

<!-- .note -->
One row per clause the reader finds. «not said here»: a role filled from the clause above. «roles by»: a VerbNet class and frame when one fits the verb, else the reader's rules on the tree.

## Meaning 2 {#m2}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
To penetrate a group or market is to get into it successfully.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:penetrate:m2:1
# text = To penetrate a group or market is to get into it successfully.
1	To	to	PART	TO	_	2	mark	_	_
2	penetrate	penetrate	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	9	advcl	_	_
3	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	4	det	_	_
4	group	group	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	obj	_	_
5	or	or	CCONJ	CC	_	6	cc	_	_
6	market	market	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	conj	_	_
7	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	9	cop	_	_
8	to	to	PART	TO	_	9	mark	_	_
9	get	get	VERB	VB	Mood=Imp|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
10	into	into	ADP	IN	_	11	case	_	_
11	it	it	PRON	PRP	Case=Acc|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	9	obl	_	_
12	successfully	successfully	ADV	RB	_	9	advmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
13	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	9	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **penetrate** | to-infinitive |  | a group or market |  |  |  |  | vn poke-19 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent group=Patient |
| 2 | **is** | present |  |  |  | market |  | get, successfully *property* | tree rules |

## Meaning 3 {#m3}

<!-- .note -->
Usage: formal — kept apart, not parsed.

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
To penetrate an idea or mystery is to understand it.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:penetrate:m3:1
# text = To penetrate an idea or mystery is to understand it.
1	To	to	PART	TO	_	2	mark	_	_
2	penetrate	penetrate	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	9	advcl	_	_
3	an	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	4	det	_	_
4	idea	idea	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	obj	_	_
5	or	or	CCONJ	CC	_	6	cc	_	_
6	mystery	mystery	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	conj	_	_
7	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	9	cop	_	_
8	to	to	PART	TO	_	9	mark	_	_
9	understand	understand	VERB	VB	Mood=Imp|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
10	it	it	PRON	PRP	Case=Acc|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	9	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
11	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	9	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **penetrate** | to-infinitive |  | a idea or mystery |  |  |  |  | vn poke-19 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent idea=Patient |
| 2 | **is** | present |  |  |  |  |  | understand *property* | tree rules |

## Meaning 4 {#m4}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
To penetrate can also mean to reach deep inside someone's feelings, so that they are touched.

<!-- fold The tree, 17 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:penetrate:m4:1
# text = To penetrate can also mean to reach deep inside someone's feelings, so that they are touched.
1	To	to	PART	TO	_	2	mark	_	_
2	penetrate	penetrate	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	5	csubj	_	_
3	can	can	AUX	MD	VerbForm=Fin	5	aux	_	_
4	also	also	ADV	RB	_	5	advmod	_	_
5	mean	mean	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	0	root	_	_
6	to	to	PART	TO	_	7	mark	_	_
7	reach	reach	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	5	xcomp	_	_
8	deep	deep	ADV	RB	_	7	advmod	_	_
9	inside	inside	ADP	IN	_	12	case	_	_
10	someone	someone	PRON	NN	Number=Sing|PronType=Ind	12	nmod:poss	_	SpaceAfter=No
11	's	's	PART	POS	_	10	case	_	_
12	feelings	feeling	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	7	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
13	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	18	punct	_	_
14	so	so	SCONJ	IN	ExtPos=SCONJ	18	mark	_	_
15	that	that	SCONJ	IN	_	14	fixed	_	_
16	they	they	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Number=Plur|Person=3|PronType=Prs	18	nsubj	_	_
17	are	be	AUX	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	18	aux:pass	_	_
18	touched	touch	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	7	conj	_	SpaceAfter=No
19	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	5	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **penetrate** | to-infinitive |  |  |  |  |  |  | vn poke-19 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent |
| 2 | **mean** | can |  |  |  |  |  |  | vn intend-61.2-1 «NP V S\_INF»: agent=Agent clause=Topic |
| 3 | **reach** *not said to happen* | to-infinitive |  |  |  | someone's feelings |  | deep *property* | vn body\_motion-49.2-1-1 «NP V»: agent=Agent |
| 4 | **touch** | present · passive |  | feelings *= feeling* |  |  |  |  | vn contiguous\_location-47.8-1 «NP V NP»: subject=Co-Theme |

## Example 1 {#x1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Sunlight cannot penetrate the deep ocean.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:penetrate:x1:1
# text = Sunlight cannot penetrate the deep ocean.
1	Sunlight	sunlight	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	nsubj	_	_
2	can	can	AUX	MD	VerbForm=Fin	4	aux	_	SpaceAfter=No
3	not	not	PART	RB	Polarity=Neg	4	advmod	_	_
4	penetrate	penetrate	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	0	root	_	_
5	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	7	det	_	_
6	deep	deep	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	7	amod	_	_
7	ocean	ocean	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
8	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	4	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **not** **penetrate** | can | Sunlight | the deep ocean |  |  |  |  | vn poke-19 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent ocean=Patient |

## Example 2 {#x2}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
The roots penetrated deep into the soil.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:penetrate:x2:1
# text = The roots penetrated deep into the soil.
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	roots	root	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	0	root	_	_
3	penetrated	penetrate	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	2	acl	_	_
4	deep	deep	ADV	RB	_	3	advmod	_	_
5	into	into	ADP	IN	_	7	case	_	_
6	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	7	det	_	_
7	soil	soil	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
8	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **penetrate** | participle |  | the roots *not said here* |  | the soil |  | deep *property* | vn poke-19 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent |

## Example 3 {#x3}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
The cold penetrated through his thin coat.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:penetrate:x3:1
# text = The cold penetrated through his thin coat.
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	cold	cold	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	_
3	penetrated	penetrate	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	2	acl	_	_
4	through	through	ADP	IN	_	7	case	_	_
5	his	his	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Gender=Masc|Number=Sing|Person=3|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	7	nmod:poss	_	_
6	thin	thin	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	7	amod	_	_
7	coat	coat	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	obl:agent	_	SpaceAfter=No
8	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **penetrate** | participle |  | the cold *not said here* |  |  |  |  | vn poke-19 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent |

## Example 4 {#x4}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
X-rays penetrate skin but not bone.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:penetrate:x4:1
# text = X-rays penetrate skin but not bone.
1	X	x	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	compound	_	SpaceAfter=No
2	-	-	PUNCT	HYPH	_	1	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
3	rays	ray	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	4	nsubj	_	_
4	penetrate	penetrate	VERB	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
5	skin	skin	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	obj	_	_
6	but	but	CCONJ	CC	_	8	cc	_	_
7	not	not	PART	RB	Polarity=Neg	8	advmod	_	_
8	bone	bone	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	conj	_	SpaceAfter=No
9	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	4	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **penetrate** | present | X rays | skin but bone |  |  |  |  | vn poke-19 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent skin=Patient |

## Example 5 {#x5}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
The torch could not penetrate the thick fog.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:penetrate:x5:1
# text = The torch could not penetrate the thick fog.
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	torch	torch	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	nsubj	_	_
3	could	could	AUX	MD	VerbForm=Fin	5	aux	_	_
4	not	not	PART	RB	Polarity=Neg	5	advmod	_	_
5	penetrate	penetrate	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	0	root	_	_
6	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	8	det	_	_
7	thick	thick	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	8	amod	_	_
8	fog	fog	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
9	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	5	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **not** **penetrate** | could | the torch | the thick fog |  |  |  |  | vn poke-19 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent fog=Patient |

## Example 6 {#x6}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Rain penetrated the old roof.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:penetrate:x6:1
# text = Rain penetrated the old roof.
1	Rain	rain	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	nsubj	_	_
2	penetrated	penetrate	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	5	det	_	_
4	old	old	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	5	amod	_	_
5	roof	roof	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
6	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **penetrate** | past | Rain | the old roof |  |  |  |  | vn poke-19 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent roof=Patient |

## Example 7 {#x7}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
These pitying words penetrated to Inge's inmost heart, and seemed to do her good.

<!-- fold The tree, 15 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:penetrate:x7:1
# text = These pitying words penetrated to Inge's inmost heart, and seemed to do her good.
1	These	this	DET	DT	Number=Plur|PronType=Dem	3	det	_	_
2	pitying	pity	VERB	VBG	VerbForm=Ger	3	amod	_	_
3	words	word	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	12	nsubj	_	_
4	penetrated	penetrate	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	3	acl	_	_
5	to	to	ADP	IN	_	9	case	_	_
6	Inge	Inge	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	9	nmod:poss	_	SpaceAfter=No
7	's	's	PART	POS	_	6	case	_	_
8	inmost	inmost	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	9	amod	_	_
9	heart	heart	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
10	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	12	punct	_	_
11	and	and	CCONJ	CC	_	12	cc	_	_
12	seemed	seem	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
13	to	to	PART	TO	_	14	mark	_	_
14	do	do	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	12	xcomp	_	_
15	her	she	PRON	PRP	Case=Acc|Gender=Fem|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	14	obj	_	_
16	good	good	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	14	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
17	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	12	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **pity** | gerund |  |  |  |  |  |  | vn admire-31.2 «NP V that S»: agent=Experiencer |
| 2 | **penetrate** | participle |  | this pitying words *not said here* |  |  |  | to Inge's inmost heart | vn poke-19 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent |
| 3 | **seem** | past | this pitying words |  |  |  |  |  | vn seem-109-1-1-1 «NP V S\_INF»: agent=Theme clause=Attribute |
| 4 | **do** | to-infinitive | this pitying words *not said here* | Inge |  |  |  |  | tree rules |

<!-- div src -->

**Text:** the school dictionary of Mova's schools (`world/data/dictionary-schools/`), written for Mova. **Trees:** Mova's own parse — the `en` model on the CPU, when the site is built — not checked by a teacher; they may be wrong. **Frames:** Mova's frames reader (`prag`), each meaning and example read on its own. Elamur Cosmic License.

<!-- /div -->

<!-- pn -->
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