arouse

verb

ə-ˈrau̇z 

aroused; arousing

transitive verb

1

: to awaken from sleep

was aroused from a deep sleep by a loud noise

2

: to stimulate to action or to bodily readiness for activity : excite

a book that has aroused debate

3

: to excite (someone) sexually : to cause sexual arousal in (someone)

… girls whose perfume scent frightened him and aroused him.

—Elizabeth Berg

intransitive verb

: to awake from sleep : stir

aroused

ə-ˈrau̇zd 

adjective

Synonyms

• awake
• awaken
• knock up [British]
• rouse
• wake
• waken

Examples of arouse in a Sentence

The report aroused a great deal of public interest.

The husky sound of her voice could always arouse him.

Their proposal is certain to arouse the opposition.

Recent Examples on the Web

The Sativa strain of cannabis will be more useful for female arousal for someone who is just in a funk and needs a little high feeling in their mind to get aroused. —Amber Smith, Discover Magazine, 6 Apr. 2024

The 1878 eclipse in the U.S. aroused fears of Armageddon, moving one man to kill his young son with an ax and slit his own throat. —John Penner, Los Angeles Times, 6 Apr. 2024

Venus’ entrance to Aries arouses your inner shopper! —USA TODAY, 5 Apr. 2024

Such readings seem almost chilly enough to arouse recollections of winter, and perhaps to suggest that January might still lurk nearby, concealed in the shadows, ready to taunt and mock the fanciers of spring. —Martin Weil, Washington Post, 25 Mar. 2024

Mosquitoes and Cold Porridge Interest in Must Farm was first aroused in 1999 when a Cambridge University archaeologist spied a series of oak posts poking out of the beds of clay at the quarry. —Franz Lidz, New York Times, 19 Mar. 2024

If Lincoln had seen Booth coming, Booth would arouse the natural instincts of the rail splitter. —Chris Klimek, Smithsonian Magazine, 21 Mar. 2024

And what’s arousing tends to be significant, regardless of its positive or negative associations (snake in the grass, mate in the bed). —Cody Cottier, Discover Magazine, 15 Mar. 2024

There’s also been a dearth of speculative coverage from British tabloids, which Hall notes has aroused suspicions. —Charlie Warzel, The Atlantic, 11 Mar. 2024

Word History

Etymology

a- (as in arise, awake entry 1) + rouse entry 1

Note: The verb arouse is formed by analogy with rise : arise, wake : awake; in these pairs a- goes back to Old English, as either the perfective prefix a- (see abide) or a reduced form of on- (see a- entry 1).

First Known Use

circa 1616, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1

Kids Definition

arouse

verb

ə-ˈrau̇z 

aroused; arousing

1

: to awaken from sleep

2

: to rouse to action : excite

Medical Definition

arouse

transitive verb

ə-ˈrau̇z 

aroused; arousing

1

a

: to awake from sleep

b

: to rouse or stimulate to action

c

: to excite (someone) sexually : to cause sexual arousal in (someone)

2

: to give rise to

a response aroused by a stimulus

arousable

ə-ˈrau̇-zə-bəl 

adjective

arousability

ə-ˌrau̇-zə-ˈbi-lə-tē 

noun

plural arousabilities