stir up

verb

stirred up; stirring up; stirs up

transitive verb

1

: to cause (someone) to feel a strong emotion and a desire to do something

The speech stirred up the crowd.

2

: to cause (something) to move up into and through the air or water

The workers stirred up a lot of dust.

3

: to disturb the quiet of : agitate

a bear stirring up the bees

4

: to cause (something, usually something bad or unpleasant) to happen

They're trying to stir up trouble.

But, of course, there's a reason politicians generally try to communicate deliberately: It helps them avoid saying things that might offend voters or stir up controversy.

—Philip Bump

I'm not a rebel, trying to stir things up just to be provocative.

—Norma Klein

… the incident stirred up a hornet's nest of protest and indignation.

—Robert T. Martinott

Examples of stir up in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

But the metal benefited from haven demand Monday as the US-Iran conflict stirred up fresh uncertainty in markets. —John Towfighi, CNN Money, 2 Mar. 2026

There’s alcoholism and violence – especially by men against women – but there’s also a yearning that can stir up grit or fortitude. —Stuart Miller, Oc Register, 28 Feb. 2026

But recent revelations have stirred up Labour lawmakers’ anger at Starmer’s poor judgment in appointing Mandelson to the Washington job in the first place. —ABC News, 27 Feb. 2026

But recent revelations have stirred up Labor lawmakers’ anger at Starmer’s poor judgment in appointing Mandelson to the Washington job in the first place. —Jill Lawless, Los Angeles Times, 27 Feb. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for stir up

• backup
• blowup
• breakup
• buildup
• checkup
• cleanup
• holdup
• hookup
• lineup
• lockup
• makeup
• markup