The terms are used both. Pierced , pierc·ing , pierc·es v. Crossing and moving through (definition of pierce from the cambridge advanced learner's dictionary & thesaurus © cambridge university press)
Pierce synonyms, pierce pronunciation, pierce translation, english dictionary definition of pierce. Pierce, penetrate suggest the action of one object passing through another or making a way through and into another. If a sharp object pierces something, or if you pierce something with a sharp object, the object goes into it and makes a hole in it.
How to use pierce in a sentence. To penetrate into or run through (something), as a sharp, pointed dagger, object, or instrument does. While all these words mean to make way into something, pierce means an entering or cutting through with a sharp. One bullet pierced the left side of his chest.
See examples of pierce used in a sentence. Some common synonyms of pierce are enter, penetrate, and probe. To cut or pass through with or as if. Crossing and moving through (definition of pierce from the cambridge advanced learner's dictionary & thesaurus © cambridge university press)