provoke
Definitions
To deliberately make someone angry or stir them into reacting.
激怒；挑衅
To cause or give rise to a reaction, feeling, or response.
激起，引发（反应、情感）
Root Breakdown
Root-derivedpro- (forth) + voke (call) = "call forth." You call a reaction out of someone. The neutral sense (provoke debate) is the original; because the reaction most often called forth is anger, the word drifted toward "deliberately irritate."
Root voc still carries 54 more wordsCommon Collocations
- 1.provoke a reaction引发反应
- 2.provoke anger激起愤怒
- 3.provoke debate引发争论
- 4.provoke a response激起回应
Example Sentences
- 1.
Don't provoke him — he's already in a bad mood.
- 2.
The article was designed to provoke debate about free speech.
- 3.
Her sharp comment provoked an angry response from the crowd.
Easily Confused
provoke vs irritate — irritate is low-grade, almost passive annoyance (loud chewing irritates me). provoke implies a deliberate push toward a strong reaction, often aimed at someone (he provoked a fight). You can irritate by accident; you usually provoke on purpose.
Synonym Comparison
- provoke — call forth a reaction, often anger, often on purpose
- incite — stir a crowd toward action, usually violence or unrest
- trigger — set something off automatically, no intent needed
- stir up — informal, rouse feelings or trouble
- elicit — neutrally draw out a response (elicit an answer)