Incite

Part of speech: verb

Pronunciation: /ɪnˈsaɪt/

Definitions

1. To deliberately provoke or stir up strong feelings or actions, especially violent or unlawful behavior, in others
2. To encourage or instigate an intense reaction or response in individuals, often leading to disruptive or aggressive conduct
3. To fuel or stimulate strong emotions or behaviors in others, frequently resulting in unrest or disorder

Etymology: The verb "incite" carries a sense of physical motion that its modern usage has largely lost. Its Latin ancestor "incitare" meant to set something in motion or hasten it forward, and the word was built from "in", meaning "in" or "on", joined to "citare", meaning to set in motion or urge. That second element is a frequentative form of "ciere", a Latin verb meaning to rouse, excite, or call, so the Latin word carried the sense of repeatedly stirring something up. English took the word from Middle French "inciter", which came from that Latin root. The journey from pushing a body forward to pushing a crowd toward violence was gradual: urging a horse onward became urging a person onward, and urging a person onward became urging them toward a deed, often a harmful one. Modern usage still carries that sense of provoking action, most commonly unrest or violence.

Synonyms: provoke, instigate, stimulate, encourage, agitate

Antonyms: calm, dissuade, discourage, prevent, suppress