PIERCINGLY Synonyms: 90 Similar and Opposite Words

piercingly

adverb

as in sharply

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Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of piercingly Chef Steven Pham is still simmering his signature Northern Vietnamese-style pho ga, which features a soul-piercingly clear broth, tender poached chicken, rice noodles, and a floating raft of fresh herbs. — Becky Duffett, Bon Appetit Magazine, 8 June 2026 The Towode Door Stop Alarm is a budget-friendly, highly effective safety tool that functions as a wedge door stop and a piercingly loud alarm when activated. — Sophie Dodd, Travel + Leisure, 31 May 2026 In the opening keynote, president of public broadcaster Arte France Bruno Patino provided a bleak yet piercingly precise evaluation of the industry today. — Rafa Sales Ross, Variety, 17 Mar. 2026 Perched along the Dalton Highway and north of the Arctic Circle, Coldfoot has virtually no light pollution, piercingly clear winter nights, and a reputation among aurora chasers for its reliable solar shows. — Sarah Buder, AFAR Media, 9 Mar. 2026 His lashes are long, the eyes deep-set, large and intense, staring piercingly into you. — Touré, Rolling Stone, 14 Oct. 2025 How could the woman who wrote so piercingly about women’s subjugation subjugate herself to not just one but two men? — Alexandra Schwartz, New Yorker, 12 Oct. 2025

Recent Examples of Synonyms for piercingly

Adverb

Heavy rain can sharply reduce visibility and create dangerous road conditions even before flooding begins.

— Brandi D. Addison, USA Today, 20 Aug. 2026
Israel sharply criticized the UK after London voiced opposition to the Jewish state’s support for settlements in the occupied West Bank, the latest in a series of rows with once strong Western allies.

— Tasneem Nashrulla, semafor.com, 20 Aug. 2026

Definition of sharply

Adverb

Our range includes a meandering cowboy odyssey that sprawls from a nowhere town in Texas to Big Sky country, a poignantly observant memoir from a wild child Dreamlander, and a careful dissection of a situationship set to the rhythms of 1970s Brazil.

— Kat Chen, Condé Nast Traveler, 4 Aug. 2026
The reunion, poignantly, took place at Charles’s country home, Highgrove House, where Harry spent much of his childhood.

— Rachel Burchfield, InStyle, 16 July 2026

Definition of poignantly

Adverb

Below, during a conversation with THR, Taylor-Joy also discusses key changes made to Jonathan Tropper’s adaptation of Marissa Stapley’s novel Lucky, before revealing what made her first day on set acutely emotional.

— Brian Davids, HollywoodReporter, 20 Aug. 2026
The industry’s promises AI companies are acutely aware of the souring views toward data centers, and several have made pledges to try and assure Americans that their buildouts will benefit the country.

— Ashley Capoot,Garrett Downs, CNBC, 20 Aug. 2026

Definition of acutely

Adverb

Republican lawmakers have largely remained silent about the conditions on the Lincoln – not harshly criticizing the administration, but not defending it either.

— Janet Loehrke, USA Today, 17 Aug. 2026
At the final stop, so to speak, before Antarctica, the weather is harshly volatile, and in the wilderness surrounding the few small cities and towns, civilization dwindles almost to nothing.

— Ana Karina Zatarain, New Yorker, 15 Aug. 2026

Definition of harshly

Adverb

The Soviet Foreign Minister Eduard Shevardnadze is played as a glowering, skeptical presence by a darkly handsome English actor.

— Tom Nichols, The Atlantic, 14 Aug. 2026
Angels is relentless, melodic, and aggressive—Pocket Pet and Achilles are standouts—a darkly feverish run of glitchy and tense soundscapes.

— Vogue, Vogue, 14 Aug. 2026

Definition of darkly

Adverb

The movie’s strongest sequences provide the all-too-rare sensation of truly not being able to believe your eyes, as the film’s most fantastical elements feel distressingly real.

— Tiffany Kelly, Entertainment Weekly, 17 July 2026
The event was halted after an hour due to fears about her safety, which distressingly encapsulates a tension that the trans Mayan artist has navigated for years.

— Eugenie Brinkema, ARTnews.com, 14 June 2026

Definition of distressingly

Adverb

What at first appears to be a run-of-the-mill trauma drama about a family dealing with the eldest child’s anorexia nervosa gradually evolves into something odder and more original, even blackly comic, in Ungrateful Beings.

— Leslie Felperin, HollywoodReporter, 25 Sep. 2025
Saadawi’s unabashedly political, blackly funny contemporary take on the mythos (superb translated by Jonathan Wright, who captures the wry humor and brooding, ominous rhythms of Saadawi’s dark tale) is, however, a true standout in a very crowded field.

— Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 16 July 2024

Definition of blackly

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piercing

piercingly

pier glass

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“Piercingly.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/piercingly. Accessed 21 Aug. 2026.

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Synonyms of piercingly

adverb

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