porous

adjective

po·​rous ˈpȯr-əs 

1

a

: possessing or full of pores

b

: containing vessels

hardwood is porous

2

a

: permeable to fluids

b

: permeable to outside influences

3

: capable of being penetrated

porous national boundaries

porously adverb

porousness noun

Synonyms

• passable
• penetrable
• permeable
• pervious

Examples of porous in a Sentence

The country has a porous border.

a cleaner that should not be used on porous surfaces

Recent Examples on the Web

What People Are Saying Jennifer Carpenter, the deputy executive director of Conservation and Government Relations for The Nature Conservancy in Florida, told Newsweek that the rising sea levels could affect inland infrastructure, due to the nature of Florida's low and porous coastline. —Theo Burman, MSNBC Newsweek, 18 May 2025

And when that wall is porous, the people in the editorial department are forced to run scared from truth-telling. —Brent Lang, Variety, 15 May 2025

When boundaries in business relationships are too porous, leaders can feel overwhelmed, taken advantage of, or emotionally depleted. —Chris Westfall, Forbes.com, 14 May 2025

Even with the addition of Nikita Zadorov and his close-quarters physicality, the Bruins were porous in net-front defending. —Fluto Shinzawa, New York Times, 2 May 2025

Word History

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Phrases Containing porous

• diffuse-porous
• ring-porous

Rhymes for porous

• chloris
• chorus
• horus
• lores
• morrice
• morus
• orris
• porus
• torus
• authorise
• clitoris
• liquorice

Kids Definition

porous

adjective

po·​rous ˈpōr-əs 

ˈpȯr-

1

: full of pores

2

: capable of absorbing liquids

Medical Definition

porous

adjective

po·​rous ˈpōr-əs, ˈpȯr- 

1

: possessing or full of pores

porous bones

2

: permeable to fluids