puncture
pronunciation
How to pronounce puncture in British English:
UK [ˈpʌŋktʃə(r)]
How to pronounce puncture in American English:
US [ˈpʌŋktʃər]
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- Noun:
- loss of air pressure in a tire when a hole is made by some sharp object
- a small hole made by a sharp object
- the act of puncturing or perforating
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- Verb:
- pierce with a pointed object; make a hole into
- make by piercing
- reduce or lessen the size or importance of
- cause to lose air pressure or collapse by piercing
- be pierced or punctured
Word Origin
- puncture (n.)
- late 14c., from Late Latin punctura "a pricking," from Latin punctus, past participle of pungere "to prick, pierce" (see pungent).
- puncture (v.)
- 1690s, from puncture (n.). Related: Punctured; puncturing.
Example
- 1. The needles painlessly puncture the skin , but do not go through it .
- 2. The last thing general motors ( gm ) needs is another puncture .
- 3. Even a small puncture to the shell , which a pointed tooth would be well able to deliver , would let the water in and cause that control to vanish .
- 4. Worries that efforts to rein in lending will slow the chinese economy -- or at least puncture bubbles in real estate and stocks -- have shaken chinese stocks .
- 5. By putting the dangers of proliferation and nuclear-armed terrorism at the forefront of its concerns , global zero would puncture the public 's post-cold-war complacency over nuclear weapons .