Instigate — meaning, pronunciation & more

Definition

provoke or stir up

serve as the inciting cause of

Pronunciation

🇺🇸American English

/ˈɪnstᵻɡˌeɪt/

🇬🇧British English

/ˈɪnstɪɡˌeɪt/

🇮🇳Indian English

/ˈɪnstɪɡˌeɪt/

3 syllables Say it as /ˈɪnstᵻɡˌeɪt/.

Examples

incite a riot
set off great unrest among the people
She prompted me to call my relatives

Synonyms & Antonyms

Synonyms

prompt inspire stir up set off incite

Parts of Speech

verb	provoke or stir up “incite a riot”
verb	serve as the inciting cause of “She prompted me to call my relatives”

Word Forms

incitive	adjective	arousing to action or rebellion
incitement	noun	an act of urging on or spurring on or rousing to action or instigating
incitation	noun	something that incites or provokes; a means of arousing or stirring to action
inciter	noun	someone who deliberately foments trouble
instigative	adjective	arousing to action or rebellion
instigation	noun	deliberate and intentional triggering (of trouble or discord)
instigant	noun	someone who deliberately foments trouble
instigator	noun	someone who deliberately foments trouble
prompting	noun	persuasion formulated as a suggestion

Around the World

Europe

🇩🇪German

anstiften

provozieren oder aufrütteln

🇫🇷French

susciter

provoquer ou attiser

🇪🇸Spanish

instigar

provocar o agitar

🇮🇹Italian

istigare

provocare o fomentare

🇳🇱Dutch

aanzetten

provoceren of ophitsen

🇵🇹Portuguese

instigar

provocar ou agitar

🇷🇺Russian

подстрекать

спровоцировать или разбудить

India

🇮🇳Hindi

भड़काना

उकसाना या उत्तेजित करना

🇧🇩Bengali

প্ররোচিত করা

প্ররোচনা বা আলোড়ন

🇮🇳Tamil

தூண்டு

தூண்டவும் அல்லது கிளறவும்

🇮🇳Telugu

ప్రేరేపించు

రెచ్చగొట్టడం లేదా రెచ్చగొట్టడం

🇮🇳Marathi

भडकावणे

भडकावणे किंवा ढवळणे

🇮🇳Gujarati

ઉશ્કેરવું

ઉશ્કેરવું અથવા જગાડવો

🇮🇳Kannada

ಪ್ರಚೋದಿಸುತ್ತವೆ

ಪ್ರಚೋದಿಸಿ ಅಥವಾ ಬೆರೆಸಿ

🇮🇳Malayalam

പ്രേരിപ്പിക്കുക

പ്രകോപിപ്പിക്കുക അല്ലെങ്കിൽ ഇളക്കുക

🇮🇳Punjabi

ਭੜਕਾਉਣਾ

ਭੜਕਾਓ ਜਾਂ ਹਿਲਾਓ

🇵🇰Urdu

اکسانا

اکسانا یا ہلانا

East & Southeast Asia

🇨🇳Chinese

唆

挑衅或煽动

🇯🇵Japanese

扇動する

挑発する、または煽動する

🇰🇷Korean

선동하다

자극하거나 휘젓다

🇻🇳Vietnamese

xúi giục

khiêu khích hoặc khuấy động

🇹🇭Thai

กระตุ้น

ยั่วยุหรือปลุกเร้า

🇮🇩Indonesian

menghasut

memprovokasi atau membangkitkan semangat

🇵🇭Filipino

sulsol

pukawin o pukawin

🇲🇾Malay

menghasut

memprovokasi atau kacau

Middle East

🇸🇦Arabic

تحريض

إثارة أو إثارة

🇮🇷Persian

تحریک کردن

تحریک یا تحریک کردن

🇹🇷Turkish

kışkırtmak

kışkırtmak veya karıştırmak

🇮🇱Hebrew

לְהַסִית

לעורר או לעורר

Test Yourself1 / 3

What is the primary definition of the word 'instigate'?

The primary meaning of 'instigate' is 'provoke or stir up'.

Which of the following sentences uses the word 'instigate' in a grammatically correct way?

Using 'instigate' in a noun/adjective form makes the first sentence correct.

In which domain is the word 'instigate' most likely to appear as standard vocabulary?

'instigate' is a standard word used primarily in general literature and formal communications.

Community Poll1 / 6

How often do you encounter the word 'instigate' in your daily reading?

Very Often

Occasionally

Rarely

Never

Do you find 'instigate' easy to spell?

Yes, very easy

Somewhat easy

A bit confusing

Extremely hard

In your opinion, does the word 'instigate' have a positive, neutral, or gloomy tone?

Positive

Neutral

Gloomy

Vibrant

Which age group is most likely to use 'instigate' in regular conversations?

Kids (3-12)

Teens (13-19)

Adults (20-60)

Seniors (60+)

How likely are you to use 'instigate' in a professional email?

Very likely

Somewhat likely

Not very likely

Never

Would you classify 'instigate' as formal, casual, or slang?

Formal

Casual

Slang

Archaic

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