as in provocative
serving or likely to arouse a strong reaction
she is no stranger to controversy, having penned several instigative and inflammatory books attacking liberals
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for instigative
Adjective
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These songs were birthed before social media algorithms shaped the direction of popular music, when singles and their accompanying videos had less winks, less meta commentary, less need to be provocative.—
Clarence A. Haynes
July 3,
Literary Hub,
3 July 2025 -
The film is provocative, if gently so, in suggesting to consider how a radical was made, and that mistreatment and bias in the West can be a contributing factor.—
Steven Zeitchik,
HollywoodReporter,
1 July 2025
Adjective
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For context, geomagnetic storms are caused by fiery eruptions from the sun's surface that send charged particles zipping toward our planet.—
Tom Brown,
Space.com,
20 May 2025
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The ceremony came at a charged moment, coinciding with Columbia University canceling its graduation ceremony (and largely closing off its campus).—
David Matthews,
New York Daily News,
6 May 2024
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Cite this Entry
“Instigative.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/instigative. Accessed 13 Jul. 2025.
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