Standard Lemma guide

incite

verb · 6 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.

  • ĭn.sīt'
  • rhymes with -aɪt
  • General-American, Received-Pronunciation: /ɪnˈsaɪt/
  • US: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
  • South-Asia: /ɪnsajʈ/
  • homophone: insight
  • CMU ARPABET: IH2 N S AY1 T Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.

1

verb

Meaning 1

To call into action.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: transitive

Examples

  • The judge was told by the accused that his friends had incited him to commit the crime.
  • incite people to violence

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

2

verb

Meaning 2

To entreat an act.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: transitive

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

3

verb

Meaning 3

To instigate a specific incident.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: transitive

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

4

verb

Meaning 4

provoke or stir up

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

Examples

  • incite a riot
  • set off great unrest among the people

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: instigate, set off, stir up

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: provoke, stimulate

Narrower terms: raise

5

verb

Meaning 5

urge on; cause to act

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

Examples

  • The other children egged the boy on, but he did not want to throw the stone through the window

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: prod, egg on

Antonyms: none provided

Narrower terms: goose, halloo, goad

6

verb

Meaning 6

give an incentive for action

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

Examples

  • This moved me to sacrifice my career

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: motivate, actuate, propel, move, prompt

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: cause, do, make

History

Etymology

From Middle French inciter, from Latin incitō (“to set in motion, hasten, urge, incite”), from in (“in, on”) + citō (“to set in motion, urge”), frequentative of cieō (“to rouse, excite, call”).

Across languages

Translations

90 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Albanian: zi — to rouse, stir up or excite
  • Albanian: valo — to rouse, stir up or excite
  • Arabic: حَرَّضَ (ḥarraḍa) — to rouse, stir up or excite
  • Arabic: حَضَّ (ḥaḍḍa) — to rouse, stir up or excite
  • Armenian: դրդել (drdel) — to rouse, stir up or excite
  • Bulgarian: подбуждам (podbuždam) — to rouse, stir up or excite
  • Bulgarian: стимулирам (stimuliram) — to rouse, stir up or excite
  • Catalan: incitar — to rouse, stir up or excite
  • Chechen: оьйхаз ваккха (öjxaz vaqqa) — to rouse, stir up or excite
  • Chinese Mandarin: 煽起 (shānqǐ) — to rouse, stir up or excite
  • Czech: podněcovat — to rouse, stir up or excite
  • Czech: navádět — to rouse, stir up or excite
  • Czech: nabádat — to rouse, stir up or excite
  • Dutch: aanzetten — to rouse, stir up or excite
  • Dutch: ophitsen — to rouse, stir up or excite
  • Esperanto: inciti — to rouse, stir up or excite
  • Finnish: yllyttää — to rouse, stir up or excite
  • Finnish: kiihottaa — to rouse, stir up or excite
  • Finnish: kannustaa — to rouse, stir up or excite
  • French: inciter — to rouse, stir up or excite
  • Galician: incinir — to rouse, stir up or excite
  • Galician: imbelicar — to rouse, stir up or excite
  • Galician: bezar — to rouse, stir up or excite
  • Galician: demerxer — to rouse, stir up or excite
  • Galician: enfoutar — to rouse, stir up or excite
  • Galician: encirrar — to rouse, stir up or excite
  • Galician: apurrar — to rouse, stir up or excite
  • Galician: enxibar — to rouse, stir up or excite
  • Galician: estrizar — to rouse, stir up or excite
  • Galician: isar — to rouse, stir up or excite
  • Galician: istar — to rouse, stir up or excite
  • Galician: enridar — to rouse, stir up or excite
  • Galician: atouzar — to rouse, stir up or excite
  • Galician: envizcar — to rouse, stir up or excite
  • German: anstacheln — to rouse, stir up or excite
  • Ancient Greek: ἐρεθίζω (erethízō) — to rouse, stir up or excite
  • Ancient Greek: ὄρνυμι (órnumi) — to rouse, stir up or excite
  • Hebrew: שלהב (shilhév) — to rouse, stir up or excite
  • Hebrew: שיסה (shisá) — to rouse, stir up or excite
  • Hindi: भड़काना (bhaṛkānā) — to rouse, stir up or excite
  • Hindi: उकसाना (uksānā) — to rouse, stir up or excite
  • Hungarian: felbujt — to rouse, stir up or excite
  • Hungarian: uszít — to rouse, stir up or excite
  • Hungarian: ösztönöz — to rouse, stir up or excite
  • Hungarian: buzdít — to rouse, stir up or excite
  • Irish: spreag — to rouse, stir up or excite
  • Irish: fadaigh — to rouse, stir up or excite
  • Irish: dreasaigh — to rouse, stir up or excite
  • Japanese: 扇ぐ (aogu) — to rouse, stir up or excite
  • Japanese: 嗾ける (keshikakeru) — to rouse, stir up or excite
  • Kapampangan: sulsul — to rouse, stir up or excite
  • Latin: incitō — to rouse, stir up or excite
  • Māori: whakakā — to rouse, stir up or excite
  • Māori: akiaki — to rouse, stir up or excite
  • Māori: ueue — to rouse, stir up or excite
  • Māori: whakatari — to rouse, stir up or excite
  • Māori: whakakoikoi — to rouse, stir up or excite
  • Occitan: incitar — to rouse, stir up or excite
  • Old English: bǣdan — to rouse, stir up or excite
  • Persian: انگیزاندن (angizândan) — to rouse, stir up or excite
  • Persian: شوراندن (šurândan) — to rouse, stir up or excite
  • Polish: podżegać — to rouse, stir up or excite
  • Polish: podżegnąć — to rouse, stir up or excite
  • Polish: wichrzyć — to rouse, stir up or excite
  • Polish: zwichrzyć — to rouse, stir up or excite
  • Portuguese: incitar — to rouse, stir up or excite
  • Portuguese: provocar — to rouse, stir up or excite
  • Quechua: hatarichiy — to rouse, stir up or excite
  • Romanian: incita — to rouse, stir up or excite
  • Romanian: ațâța — to rouse, stir up or excite
  • Romanian: stârni — to rouse, stir up or excite
  • Russian: подстрека́ть (podstrekátʹ) — to rouse, stir up or excite
  • Russian: подбива́ть (podbivátʹ) — to rouse, stir up or excite
  • Russian: разжига́ть (razžigátʹ) — to rouse, stir up or excite
  • Sanskrit: चोदति (codati) — to rouse, stir up or excite
  • Spanish: incitar — to rouse, stir up or excite
  • Spanish: concitar — to rouse, stir up or excite
  • Tagalog: sulsol — to rouse, stir up or excite
  • Thai: ปลุกระดม — to rouse, stir up or excite
  • Thai: ปลุก (bplùk) — to rouse, stir up or excite
  • Thai: ยุยง (yú-yong) — to rouse, stir up or excite
  • Thai: ยั่วยุ — to rouse, stir up or excite
  • Turkish: kışkırtmak — to rouse, stir up or excite
  • Ottoman Turkish: دورتمك (dürtmek) — to rouse, stir up or excite
  • Ottoman Turkish: كوروكلمك (körüklemek) — to rouse, stir up or excite
  • Ukrainian: підбу́рювати (pidbúrjuvaty) — to rouse, stir up or excite
  • Ukrainian: підбу́рити (pidbúryty) — to rouse, stir up or excite
  • Urdu: بھڑَکانا (bhaṛkānā) — to rouse, stir up or excite
  • Urdu: اکسانا (uksānā) — to rouse, stir up or excite
  • Vietnamese: kích động — to rouse, stir up or excite