provocative
adjective
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Definition of provocative
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Synonyms & Antonyms for provocative
Synonyms
charged, edgy, exciting, inciting, instigating, instigative, piquing, provoking, stimulating
Antonyms
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Examples of provocative in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
In that light, the undies are provocative by virtue of their unabashedly unsexy proportions. — Liana Satenstein, Vogue, "Are You Ready for the Return of Tighty-Whities? Gucci Sure Is," 25 Sep. 2018 The 73-year-old defends her goddaughter's early phases of experimentation, even comparing Miley's provocative style to her own over-the-top appearance. — Kelly O'sullivan, Country Living, "How Is Dolly Parton Related to Miley Cyrus?," 10 Feb. 2019 Unfortunate @realDonaldTrump spoke of US-RoK exercises as provocative war games. — Eric Levitz, Daily Intelligencer, "Trump Suspends ‘Provocative’ War Games With South Korea," 12 June 2018 Defenders of the Trump administration’s strategy note that at least the North has ended its provocative missile and nuclear tests. — Gardiner Harris, BostonGlobe.com, "Pompeo arrives in North Korea to try to curb its nuclear program," 6 July 2018 Trump may want to declare victory after Singapore and move on, especially if North Korea does not conduct provocative missile or nuclear tests. — Jane Vaynman, Washington Post, "There are signs North Korea is still working on its nuclear program. Here’s why ‘denuclearization’ is so problematic.," 30 June 2018 Then there are simmering trade tensions, with provocative moves by both sides. — Joanna Slater, Washington Post, "Mike Pompeo was supposed to meet with his Indian counterpart. He went to North Korea instead.," 6 July 2018 Putin's visit to Austria -- his first foreign trip since his re-election in March -- is seen by some as a provocative move. — Schams Elwazer, Kevin Liptak And Judith Vonberg, CNN, "Putin says he speaks regularly to Trump, isn't trying to divide Europe," 5 June 2018 If the provocative moves were part of a broader strategy, the embassy relocation might be an initial negotiating point. — Tracy Wilkinson, latimes.com, "Trump administration support for Israel goes beyond its predecessors and isolates U.S. internationally," 17 May 2018These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'provocative.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
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More Definitions for provocative
provocative
adjective
English Language Learners Definition of provocative
See the full definition for provocative in the English Language Learners Dictionary
provocative
adjective
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Kids Definition of provocative
provocative
adjective
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Medical Definition of provocative
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