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It's time to investigate the true meaning of instigate. Instigate is often used as a synonym of incite (as in "siblings instigating a fight"), but the two words differ slightly in their overall usage. Incite usually stresses an act of stirring something up that one did not necessarily initiate ("the court's decision incited riots"), while instigate implies responsibility for initiating or encouraging someone else's action, and usually suggests dubious or underhanded intent ("he was charged with instigating a conspiracy"). Coming from a form of the Latin verb instigare ("to urge on or provoke"), instigate stepped into English in the 1500s, roughly a century after incite.
Examples of instigate in a Sentence
Antonio Ferme, Variety, 14 June 2026
The angry crowd grew at nightfall, instigated by word of mouth and local radio broadcasts.
—Michael Peregrine, Chicago Tribune, 12 June 2026
And Washington, of course, had nothing to do with instigating or inciting the insurrection.
—New York Times, 11 June 2026
There also is a contingent inside CBS News and the overall network that views some of the changes Weiss has instigated as long overdue for a 21st century media organization.
—Dominic Patten, Deadline, 3 June 2026
See All Example Sentences for instigate
Cite this Entry
“Instigate.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/instigate. Accessed 17 Jun. 2026.
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