provoke

verb
UK: /prəˈvəʊk/
US: /prəˈvoʊk/

  1. To make someone angry or annoyed.

    1. Don't provoke him; he gets angry easily.
    2. The dog barks aggressively when strangers provoke it near the fence.

  2. To cause a reaction or feeling, especially a strong or negative one.

    1. The speech did provoke a lot of anger.
    2. Her controversial artwork aims to provoke discussion about societal norms and values.

  3. To incite or bring about (a reaction or emotion) from someone.

    1. I didn't mean to provoke such a response.
    2. The government's actions could provoke a violent response from the protesters.

Synonyms

exasperate trigger annoy arouse instigate elicit irritate

Frequently Asked Questions

The word "provoke" in English means: To make someone angry or annoyed., To cause a reaction or feeling, especially a strong or negative one., To incite or bring about (a reaction or emotion) from someone..

The phonetic transcription of "provoke" is /prəˈvəʊk/ in British English and /prəˈvoʊk/ in American English. Click the 🔊 button to hear both pronunciations.

Synonyms for "provoke": exasperate, trigger, annoy, arouse, instigate, elicit, irritate.

Example usage of "provoke": "Don't provoke him; he gets angry easily.". More examples on the page.