variants
also enflames
1
as in angers
to make angry
the newspaper editorial inflamed her enough to inspire her to dash off a letter to the editor
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in burns
to set (something) on fire
a carelessly tossed cigarette inflamed the papers in the trash can
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of inflames
This is the kind of journalism that makes people distrust anything the news media tell us, and potentially wrongly inflames the public.
—
Arkansas Online, 28 Jan. 2026
Why vocabulary avoidance creates the space populists fill European governments spent a decade learning that sloppy language inflames prejudice.
—Güney Yıldız, Forbes.com, 24 Jan. 2026
In other words, alcohol disrupts hydration, irritates the gut, inflames blood vessels, messes with sleep, and forces your liver into metabolic overdrive.
—Ciara Lucas, SELF, 30 Dec. 2025
Pneumonia is an infection that inflames the sacs in one or both lungs, according to the Mayo Clinic.
—Rebecca Cohen, NBC news, 16 Oct. 2025
The shingles vaccine is up to 97% effective in preventing the condition caused by the herpes zoster virus, which inflames nerves and causes painful rashes.
—New Atlas, 28 Aug. 2025
Arkansas Online, 28 Jan. 2026
Why vocabulary avoidance creates the space populists fill European governments spent a decade learning that sloppy language inflames prejudice.
—Güney Yıldız, Forbes.com, 24 Jan. 2026
In other words, alcohol disrupts hydration, irritates the gut, inflames blood vessels, messes with sleep, and forces your liver into metabolic overdrive.
—Ciara Lucas, SELF, 30 Dec. 2025
Pneumonia is an infection that inflames the sacs in one or both lungs, according to the Mayo Clinic.
—Rebecca Cohen, NBC news, 16 Oct. 2025
The shingles vaccine is up to 97% effective in preventing the condition caused by the herpes zoster virus, which inflames nerves and causes painful rashes.
—New Atlas, 28 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for inflames
Verb
-
What angers me is thinking about what could have been.—
Caroline Blair,
PEOPLE,
12 Dec. 2025
-
And nothing angers the Survivor gods more than reality TV hubris.—
Dalton Ross,
Entertainment Weekly,
2 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
Your body burns additional calories in the cold from shivering.—
Kaelyn Lynch,
Outside,
23 Jan. 2026
-
According to Amnesty International, Israel used white phosphorus, a highly reactive chemical that burns at extremely high temperatures when exposed to air.—
Josiane Yazbeck,
The Conversation,
22 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
Unfortunately, Ashur’s idea to achieve this goal infuriates everyone.—
Aramide Tinubu,
Variety,
1 Dec. 2025
-
Investigative reporting is bad enough; often what really infuriates him is jokes.—
David Remnick,
New Yorker,
19 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
Under California law, most of those payments, as well as the lawsuit settlements, are expected to be covered by a state wildfire fund that lawmakers created to shield the three biggest for-profit utilities from bankruptcy if their equipment ignites a catastrophic fire.—
Melody Petersen,
Los Angeles Times,
28 Jan. 2026
-
Think again, as the California Zephyr, the longest route in America crosses through seven states, carving up Colorado’s canyons, then passing into Utah where the sun ignites mesas into flaming towers of rock.—
Arati Menon,
Condé Nast Traveler,
28 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
This is exactly the kind of mainstream Christian view that enrages Allie Beth Stuckey.—
Hillary Rodham Clinton,
The Atlantic,
29 Jan. 2026
-
This enrages Rebecca, who demands half his new salary, and the pair engage in a battle for control.—
Ilana Gordon,
Entertainment Weekly,
29 Dec. 2025
Verb
-
As the world around them scorches under record heat, a family walks into the woods, asking what the future holds in this thermal dystopia.—
Anthony D'Alessandro,
Deadline,
14 Jan. 2026
-
That’s the difference between fury that scorches everything in sight and anger that fuels justice.—
Marc Brackett,
Time,
28 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
There’s another distinctly New York habit that irritates Manville — at the end of the performances, theatergoers leap to their feat, not just to applaud, but to whip out their cellphones to record the curtain call.—
Brent Lang,
Variety,
16 Jan. 2026
-
Somehow, this irritates Helen even more.—
Sadia Shepard,
New Yorker,
11 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
While Martin Scorsese called it one of the scariest movies of all time, The Uninvited kindles a wonderful romance between Rick and Stella.—
Steven Thrash,
Entertainment Weekly,
25 Oct. 2025
-
The star of Big Little Lies confessed her new film, Caught Stealing, kindles a powerful yearning for some aspects of the era.—
Ryan Coleman,
EW.com,
1 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Inflames.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/inflames. Accessed 5 Feb. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
