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
Trump gets his headlines, and inflicts a jolt of panic, and doesn't care whether this survives first contact with the courts.
—
Billal Rahman, MSNBC Newsweek, 24 Sep. 2025
But using the criminal law to punish political opponents as retribution inflicts far greater damage.
—Ruth Marcus, New Yorker, 21 Sep. 2025
But Venugopal points out that the lab study couldn’t capture the onslaught of enzymes, teeth gritting, and temperature variation that a real human mouth inflicts.
—Zoë Schlanger, The Atlantic, 25 Aug. 2025
Billal Rahman, MSNBC Newsweek, 24 Sep. 2025
But using the criminal law to punish political opponents as retribution inflicts far greater damage.
—Ruth Marcus, New Yorker, 21 Sep. 2025
But Venugopal points out that the lab study couldn’t capture the onslaught of enzymes, teeth gritting, and temperature variation that a real human mouth inflicts.
—Zoë Schlanger, The Atlantic, 25 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for inflicts
Verb
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The bill then imposes strict bail guidelines for those who have previously been convicted of violent offenses, and even for first-time offenders.—
Peter D'Abrosca,
FOXNews.com,
26 Sep. 2025
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The board's removal order imposes daily civil penalties of $998 for each day Guevara hasn’t left the country.—
Eduardo Cuevas,
USA Today,
25 Sep. 2025
Verb
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Rolling or folding one end of the towel creates a slight angle for the brushes to dry on.—
Cody Godwin,
USA Today,
5 Oct. 2025
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Updating colleagues on the Dragon Bravo Fire during a meeting of the Glen Canyon Adaptive Management Program in late August, Grand Canyon Superintendent Ed Keable said rebuilding the lodge creates an opportunity to keep it open all year.—
Brandon Loomis,
AZCentral.com,
5 Oct. 2025
Verb
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Church attack brings for army of helpers A Grand Blanc Township resident opened his home to people fleeing the church attack.—
John Wisely,
Freep.com,
3 Oct. 2025
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While manufacturing provides more than 470,000 jobs and brings more than $66 billion into Wisconsin's economy, the sector continues to decline in the state despite growth nationally.—
Anna Kleiber,
jsonline.com,
2 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Inflicts.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/inflicts. Accessed 7 Oct. 2025.
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