Penetrates
I believe the answer is:
pierces
<span class="explanation-format__ClueExplanation">'<span class="explanation-format__original">penetrates</span>' is the definition.<br/ ><span class="explanation-format__explanation">(piercing is a kind of penetrating)</span><br/ ><br/ >This is all the clue.<br/ ></span>
(Other definitions for pierces that I've seen before include "Stabs" , "Punctures" .)