1
as in provoked
to bring (something volatile or intense) into being
the rock band's failure to show up incited a riot, as the crowd had waited for hours
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in encouraged
to rouse to strong feeling or action
the demagogue's fiery rant incited the crowd to riot
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of incited
Loewenstein also disputed Ryvchin’s claim that pro-Palestinian marches in Australia, some of the largest of which have taken place in Sydney, had incited violence against the Jewish community.
—
Katie Silver, NBC news, 25 Dec. 2025
Was an insurrection incited by the President of the United States.
—Susan Page, USA Today, 15 Dec. 2025
Transgender comedian Stacy Cay incited backlash on social media Friday after making a joke about former high school volleyball player Payton McNabb's brain injury.
—Jackson Thompson, FOXNews.com, 5 Dec. 2025
The country had reelected Shepherd’s feral heir, but this one incited an insurrection and called it patriotism.
—Alexis Coe, Rolling Stone, 16 Nov. 2025
Bolduc’s hit on Senators star defenceman Jake Sanderson just before the nine-minute mark of the first period sent Sanderson into the Canadiens’ bench and incited Sens tough guy Kurtis MacDermid to go after him, handing the Canadiens a power play.
—Arpon Basu, New York Times, 3 Nov. 2025
Halloween was just around the corner, and the Tylenol murders incited panic among parents who feared trick-or-treat candy could be laced with poison or razors.
—Mark Dent, HubSpot, 24 Oct. 2025
Earlier this year, the Parenthood alum incited anger for sharing a NSFW post of Bell doing nude yoga to celebrate the news of her Nobody Wants This Emmy nomination.
—Shania Russell, Entertainment Weekly, 20 Oct. 2025
Back then, a single team coming together to put a pair of climbers on a summit incited national celebration.
—Owen Clarke, Outside, 6 Oct. 2025
Katie Silver, NBC news, 25 Dec. 2025
Was an insurrection incited by the President of the United States.
—Susan Page, USA Today, 15 Dec. 2025
Transgender comedian Stacy Cay incited backlash on social media Friday after making a joke about former high school volleyball player Payton McNabb's brain injury.
—Jackson Thompson, FOXNews.com, 5 Dec. 2025
The country had reelected Shepherd’s feral heir, but this one incited an insurrection and called it patriotism.
—Alexis Coe, Rolling Stone, 16 Nov. 2025
Bolduc’s hit on Senators star defenceman Jake Sanderson just before the nine-minute mark of the first period sent Sanderson into the Canadiens’ bench and incited Sens tough guy Kurtis MacDermid to go after him, handing the Canadiens a power play.
—Arpon Basu, New York Times, 3 Nov. 2025
Halloween was just around the corner, and the Tylenol murders incited panic among parents who feared trick-or-treat candy could be laced with poison or razors.
—Mark Dent, HubSpot, 24 Oct. 2025
Earlier this year, the Parenthood alum incited anger for sharing a NSFW post of Bell doing nude yoga to celebrate the news of her Nobody Wants This Emmy nomination.
—Shania Russell, Entertainment Weekly, 20 Oct. 2025
Back then, a single team coming together to put a pair of climbers on a summit incited national celebration.
—Owen Clarke, Outside, 6 Oct. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for incited
Verb
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Visit our website What is striking in retrospect is how little resistance Roosevelt’s framing provoked.—
Philip Martin,
Washington Post,
7 Jan. 2026
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This, in turn, reinforced Webster’s own initial claim about his fight with the MPD cop—that Rathbun had provoked the encounter by striking him in the head, then lied about it to counter Webster’s righteous assertion of self-defense, resulting in his wrongful conviction.—
Jamie Thompson,
The Atlantic,
6 Jan. 2026
Verb
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The city’s emergency overflow shelter is available to adults over 18, with capacity for dogs in kennels, but the office encouraged people who need a warm place to sleep to seek primary shelters as a first option.—
Austin Hornbostel,
Nashville Tennessean,
9 Nov. 2025
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During the end of the latter track, Lauper encouraged audience members to sing along and brought Salt-n-Pepa onstage to join in.—
Nina Corcoran,
Pitchfork,
9 Nov. 2025
Verb
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Many contests maintain that the frogs can be stimulated humanely to jump, such as someone blowing on them or clapping their hands behind them.—
Laura Schulte,
jsonline.com,
26 Dec. 2025
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They can also be stimulated by the absence of male toxicity.—
Seth Abramovitch,
HollywoodReporter,
22 Dec. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Incited.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/incited. Accessed 13 Jan. 2026.
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