Basic Details
Word: Ear-piercing
Part of Speech: Adjective
Meaning: So loud and high that it hurts the ears; as a noun, the making of a small hole in the ear for an earring.
Synonyms: shrill, deafening, piercing, high-pitched
Antonyms: soft, quiet, muted
How to Spell Ear-piercing
Syllables: ear - pierc - ing
Tricky part: Pierce follows i before e: p-i-e-r-c-e, and its final e drops before -ing. Keep the hyphen between ear and piercing.
Watch out for: ear-peircing, ear-pearcing, ear-piersing
Memory tip: There is a pie at the start of pierce: p-i-e, then rce. Picture a fork piercing a pie.
Usage Examples
Example 1: The smoke alarm gave an ear-piercing beep at midnight.
Example 2: The baby let out an ear-piercing scream when her balloon popped.
Example 3: My cousin went to a jeweller for ear-piercing before the wedding.
Fun Fact
Loudness is measured in decibels; a sound of about 120 decibels, like a siren a few metres away, can cause pain in the ears.
Practise the CREST Way
Word Cookie
Fill in the missing letters to complete the word:
ear-p__rcing
a) e, i
b) i, a
c) e, a
d) i, e
Show answer
d) i, e. Pierce keeps the i before the e, the same order as in pie.
Word Connection
Choose the antonym of the word ear-piercing as used in the sentence:
The referee's ear-piercing whistle stopped the match at once.
a) faint
b) shrill
c) deafening
d) high-pitched
Show answer
a) faint. Shrill, deafening and high-pitched all describe a sound that hurts; a faint one is barely heard.
Spell-o-Spell
Only one word in the list is spelt correctly. Choose the meaning of that word.
1. thundrous 2. whisle 3. ear-piercing 4. defening
a) so loud and high that it hurts the ears
b) very loud, with a deep rumbling sound
c) a small device blown to make a high sound
d) so loud that you cannot hear anything else
Show answer
a) so loud and high that it hurts the ears. Deafening keeps the a of deaf, thunderous keeps the e of thunder, and whistle has a silent t.
Multiple Choice Questions
1. A sound described as ear-piercing could come from ____.
a) a falling feather
b) a ticking watch
c) a whisper
d) a fire alarm
Show answer
d) a fire alarm
2. Ear-piercing at a jeweller's shop is done so that a person can ____.
a) measure sound
b) hear better
c) wear earrings
d) clean the ears
Show answer
c) wear earrings
