provoked 1 of 2

adjective

as in aggravated

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provoked

2 of 2

verb

past tense of provoke
1
as in encouraged
to rouse to strong feeling or action his teasing finally provoked her to anger bees generally will not sting unless they are provoked

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in triggered
to bring (something volatile or intense) into being rankings that are sure to provoke an argument among film buffs

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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 provoked
Verb
That provoked a campaign of US strikes early in 2025, which degraded their capabilities. — Chris Lau, CNN Money, 26 July 2026 Speculation continues to swirl around Fernandez’s future, provoked further by Fernandez now being a villain in the eyes of many English soccer fans. — Graham Ruthven, Forbes.com, 26 July 2026 He was also sent off for a headbutt against an opponent who provoked him in his last ever match, which happened to be the 2006 World Cup final; his human reaction laid bare on the highest stage of all. — Amy Lawrence, New York Times, 21 July 2026 Broadnose sevengill sharks are considered aggressive when provoked and are classified as dangerous in both Australia and New Zealand, per the Institute. — Toria Sheffield, PEOPLE, 18 July 2026 Fear provoked his legendary rages—breaking chairs, throwing things, cutting people out of his life. — Hilton Als, New Yorker, 17 July 2026 Simeone is the son of former Argentine great and Atletico Madrid coach Diego Simeone, who provoked David Beckham’s red card during the 1998 World Cup Round of 16. — Michelle Kaufman, Miami Herald, 16 July 2026 Los Angeles County prosecutors charged Jason Melara, Taylor and Johnson not only with his murder, but also the killing of Mario Melara under the theory that his death was provoked by the armed robbery of Aguilar. — Matthew Ormseth, Los Angeles Times, 11 July 2026 Those long evenings provoked tears of laughter, sometimes sorrow, and occasionally both in the course of a meal. — Thomas Chatterton Williams, The Atlantic, 11 July 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for provoked
  1. aggravated
  2. encouraged
  3. triggered
  4. frustrated
  5. stimulated
  6. raised
  7. tortured
  8. stirred
Adjective
  • His son, 16-year-old Colt Gray, pleaded guilty to all 55 counts against him, including murder and aggravated assault.
    — Meredith Deliso, ABC News, 30 July 2026
  • State prison records show Milton has previously done years behind bars for burglary, retail theft, drug possession, armed robbery and aggravated battery, among other convictions, stretching back to the late 1990s.
    — Dan Petrella, Chicago Tribune, 18 July 2026
Definition of aggravated
Verb
  • More than 48 hours later, the team hasn’t released any MRI results and Bader has declined to provide public comments, despite being encouraged by the club to talk to reporters or make a statement.
    — Andrew Baggarly, New York Times, 31 July 2026
  • Cruz and Bardem have always encouraged their children’s creative pursuits.
    — Carlos Aguilar, Los Angeles Times, 31 July 2026
Definition of encouraged
Verb
  • However, amongst all of these cases, there are some that were seemingly triggered remotely, and this leads Batou and Togusa on the trail of a shady robotics manufacturer, with a corrupt and entirely cybernetic boss.
    — Ollie Barder, Forbes.com, 29 July 2026
  • The Iran war triggered a historic oil shortage that drove up fuel costs and catapulted inflation to a three-year high.
    — Max Zahn, ABC News, 29 July 2026
Definition of triggered
Adjective
  • The first baseman, stepping in front of a small group of reporters Saturday in Boston, was asked for his message to frustrated fans.
    — Mitch Bannon, New York Times, 27 July 2026
  • Crow-Armstrong was visibly frustrated taking strike 3 with runners on the corners.
    — Meghan Montemurro, Chicago Tribune, 26 July 2026
Definition of frustrated
Verb
  • Beijing's pullback of NEV subsidies, which had previously stimulated consumer appetite, has tempered demand for cars in 2026.
    — Matthew Tan,Evelyn Cheng, CNBC, 20 July 2026
  • Many major tech companies engineered environments designed to keep smart people in the building longer—fed, caffeinated and stimulated enough to move at a pace that older, slower companies couldn't match.
    — Vince Carrabba, Forbes.com, 8 July 2026
Definition of stimulated
Verb
  • Multiple people familiar with the matter said the crown prince raised concerns about plans for potential strikes on Iran during the call.
    — Sophie Tanno, CNN Money, 2 Aug. 2026
  • The union has also raised questions about Cázares' role as fiscal advisor, pointing to her previous work overseeing other financially troubled school districts and questioning her compensation.
    — Richard Ramos, CBS News, 1 Aug. 2026
Definition of raised
Adjective
  • The committee is tasked with analyzing and reviewing problematic conference papers and enhancing quality screening of articles prior to publication to detect integrity issues such as plagiarism and tortured phrases.
    — IEEE Spectrum, IEEE Spectrum, 30 July 2026
  • Bernstine brings just enough light to her tortured cop, while McNairy brings just enough anguish to his good-hearted caretaker.
    — Ben Travers, IndieWire, 27 July 2026
Definition of tortured
Verb
  • People enjoy them in countless ways, including being folded into shortcake, mixed into fruit salad, dipped in chocolate, piled on pancakes, stirred into yogurt, blended into smoothies or simply eaten by the handful as a refreshing snack.
    — Daryl Austin, USA Today, 26 July 2026
  • The chance of rescuing the legend whose equipment provides around a quarter of the world’s electricity and whose engines power about three-quarters of commercial flights worldwide clearly stirred the ultra-competitive Culp to action.
    — Shawn Tully, Fortune, 23 July 2026
Definition of stirred

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Cite this Entry

“Provoked.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/provoked. Accessed 3 Aug. 2026.

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Nglish: Translation of provoked for Spanish Speakers

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