Incite
/ɪnˈsaɪt/
verbB2
Definition
To incite means to make people feel strong emotions or take action, especially actions that are angry, violent, or harmful. It usually means encouraging others to do something quickly or strongly, sometimes in a negative way.
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See It in Action
To encourage strong action or feelings, often negative
- •The speaker incited the crowd to protest against the law.
- •His words incited anger among the listeners.
- •The article was accused of inciting violence.
To cause or start something to happen
- •The event incited a lot of discussion online.
- •The news incited fear in the community.
Make It Stick
- ✓Think of "incite" like "make" or "start," but specifically to make strong feelings or actions happen, often bad ones
- ✓Picture a person shouting to a crowd to get them angry or excited to act quickly
- ✓It's the feeling when someone says something that makes you want to react strongly, like shouting or protesting
- ✓Sounds like "in-SIGHT" → Imagine looking inside someone’s feelings and pushing them to act
- ✓Think of stories where a leader incites people to stand up or fight for a cause
- ✓NOT like "suggest" (which is calm and gentle), incite is strong and pushes people to act fast
- ✓NOT like "help" (which is positive), incite can cause trouble or anger
- ✓NOT like "calm" (which reduces feelings), incite increases feelings or actions
Try Other Words
- •Provoke: to make someone angry or upset (Use when the focus is on making emotions stronger, especially anger)
- •Encourage: to give support or confidence (Use when the action is positive or neutral)
- •Stimulate: to make something active or excited (Use for general activation, not always emotional)
- •Agitate: to disturb or upset people to cause action (Use when people are being stirred up, often for protests or trouble)
Unboxing
- •Prefix: "in-" meaning "into" or "toward"
- •Root: "cite" from Latin "citare" meaning "to call" or "to summon"
- •Etymology: From Latin "incitare," meaning to urge on or rouse to action
- •Historical development: Used since the 15th century to mean urging or provoking action, often in a legal or political sense
- •Modern usage: Commonly used to describe speech or actions that encourage strong or violent reactions, sometimes in news, law, or politics
Reflect & Connect
•Can inciting always be seen as a bad action, or can it be positive in some situations?
•How do you think words can incite people to act differently in everyday life?
Fill in the blanks
1.The politician's speech incited the crowd to ___ against the new law.
2.When someone incites anger, it usually leads to ___ reactions.
3.Unlike calm advice, incite often ___ strong emotions quickly.
4.The article was accused of inciting ___ by spreading false information.
5.People who incite violence can sometimes face ___ from the law.
6.To incite action, a leader must often use ___ language that motivates people.
7.When a peaceful meeting turns into a protest, it might have been ___ by someone’s words.