Meaning

verb pass into or through, often by overcoming resistance

verb come to understand

verb become clear or enter one's consciousness or emotions

originFrom Latin penētrātus, perfect passive participle of penētrō (“to put, set, or place within, enter, pierce, penetrate”) (see -ate (verb-forming suffix)), from penes (“within, with”) by analogy to intrō (“to go in, enter”). Compare French pénétrer.

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 3.0