as in imposes
to cause someone to accept or experience something unwanted
The criminal inflicted a lifetime of distress on his unsuspecting victims.
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Recent Examples of inflicts
If a minor fires the gun and inflicts harm on themselves or another individual, the person who failed to store the gun properly could face a felony punishable by up to 10 years in prison, a maximum fine of $7,500, or both.
—
Paula Wethington, CBS News, 5 Mar. 2026
Only if the Pac-12 collects three or four NCAA Tournament bids on a regular basis and a team not named Gonzaga or San Diego State inflicts damage in March Madness.
—Jon Wilner, San Diego Union-Tribune, 26 Jan. 2026
Leadership that dismisses or undermines inclusion inflicts real harm on students, faculty, and staff.
—Wanda James, Denver Post, 13 Jan. 2026
The virus inflicts acute gastroenteritis — inflammation of the stomach or intestines — on people of all ages in the United States, the CDC said.
—Hannah Poukish, Sacbee.com, 15 Dec. 2025
The costume designer adds that those subtle perforations become deeper cuts only when Will begins to doubt his own abilities as a father, and inflicts damage of his own.
—Elaina Patton, Vogue, 27 Nov. 2025
In the coming centuries, what the world inflicts on Greenland will be reflected back on it; the melting of the Greenlandic ice sheet will inundate coastal areas from Dhaka to Mar-a-Lago.
—Ben Taub, New Yorker, 24 Nov. 2025
The Blackcoat's Daughter (2015) Moody and intricate (sometimes maddeningly so), this debut from Oz Perkins (son of Psycho star Anthony) inflicts supernatural horror and grief upon the students of a Catholic boarding school.
—Dennis Perkins, Entertainment Weekly, 31 Oct. 2025
And, fair or not, White evangelical Christians are viewed by many as the group that inflicts the most pain.
—John Blake, CNN Money, 26 Oct. 2025
Paula Wethington, CBS News, 5 Mar. 2026
Only if the Pac-12 collects three or four NCAA Tournament bids on a regular basis and a team not named Gonzaga or San Diego State inflicts damage in March Madness.
—Jon Wilner, San Diego Union-Tribune, 26 Jan. 2026
Leadership that dismisses or undermines inclusion inflicts real harm on students, faculty, and staff.
—Wanda James, Denver Post, 13 Jan. 2026
The virus inflicts acute gastroenteritis — inflammation of the stomach or intestines — on people of all ages in the United States, the CDC said.
—Hannah Poukish, Sacbee.com, 15 Dec. 2025
The costume designer adds that those subtle perforations become deeper cuts only when Will begins to doubt his own abilities as a father, and inflicts damage of his own.
—Elaina Patton, Vogue, 27 Nov. 2025
In the coming centuries, what the world inflicts on Greenland will be reflected back on it; the melting of the Greenlandic ice sheet will inundate coastal areas from Dhaka to Mar-a-Lago.
—Ben Taub, New Yorker, 24 Nov. 2025
The Blackcoat's Daughter (2015) Moody and intricate (sometimes maddeningly so), this debut from Oz Perkins (son of Psycho star Anthony) inflicts supernatural horror and grief upon the students of a Catholic boarding school.
—Dennis Perkins, Entertainment Weekly, 31 Oct. 2025
And, fair or not, White evangelical Christians are viewed by many as the group that inflicts the most pain.
—John Blake, CNN Money, 26 Oct. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for inflicts
Verb
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Its across-the-board native cloud infrastructure and NVMe storage give it an edge over many conventional hosting providers, although HostArmada imposes stricter limits on storage, database sizes, and monthly data transfers as a trade-off.—
Gabriel Zamora,
PC Magazine,
8 Mar. 2026
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No country in the world imposes a pure graduate tax, though many use income-contingent loans.—
The Week UK,
TheWeek,
1 Mar. 2026
Verb
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Regulating heat in these systems creates the right conditions for peak efficiency and performance, according to a press release.—
Prabhat Ranjan Mishra,
Interesting Engineering,
9 Mar. 2026
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The contrast between the volume of the trench coat and the clean lines of straight-leg jeans creates an interesting and very trendy silhouette.—
René Chávez Esparza,
Glamour,
8 Mar. 2026
Verb
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But the letter is yet another representation of the growing consensus on the left against consolidation that brings major news organizations under one roof, particularly when that house is owned by Ellison.—
Max Tani,
semafor.com,
6 Mar. 2026
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Naomi Fry says that this iteration brings with it a fresh sense of authenticity and vulnerability.—
Caroline Mimbs Nyce,
New Yorker,
6 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Inflicts.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/inflicts. Accessed 12 Mar. 2026.
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