The flame of the second match failed to penetrate more than a yard or two down the corridor.

I believe the bullet had spent a great deal of its energy at this distance, and thus it failed to penetrate farther.

They took heavy losses and failed to penetrate the base.

The poet was speaking to him, but his words failed to penetrate.

One of them struck my shoulder, but the point failed to penetrate and the shaft glanced away.

He could see the stone for hundreds of feet before the light failed to penetrate farther.

Someone speaking words whose meaning failed to penetrate his stupefied mind.

However, it failed to penetrate the armor at close range.

They saw a team that failed to penetrate gaps.

Why have they failed to spectacularly to penetrate the mainstream?