arouse
Americanverb (used with object)
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arouses,
present (3rd person singular)
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aroused,
past participle, past
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arousing
present participle
verb (used without object)
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arouses,
present (3rd person singular)
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aroused,
past participle, past
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arousing
present participle
verb
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(tr) to evoke or elicit (a reaction, emotion, or response); stimulate
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to awaken from sleep
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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arousabilitynoun
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arousalnoun
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arousernoun
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rearouseverb
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arousableadjective
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unarousableadjective
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unarousingadjective
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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arousesimple
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arousessimple
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have arousedperfect
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has arousedperfect
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am arousingprogressive
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are arousingprogressive
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is arousingprogressive
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have been arousingperfect progressive
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has been arousingperfect progressive
Past
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arousedsimple
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had arousedperfect
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was arousingprogressive
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were arousingprogressive
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had been arousingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of arouse
Explanation
Although the verb arouse basically means "to wake up," it is usually not accomplished with an alarm clock. A patriotic song might arouse your love of country, and a new idea might arouse your imagination. The word comes from an Old French word meaning "stir up, awaken," and anything that arouses your mind or heart can awaken something in you; for example, the prospect of an exciting experience may arouse your sense of adventure. Arouse can also be used with negative feelings. A sneaky look might arouse your suspicion, or rejection might arouse a sense of bitterness. However, usually, arouse carries with it a sense of excitement, of bringing something to life.
Vocabulary lists containing arouse
Talk Like Shakespeare Day, List 5
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Travels with Charley
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The Ch'i-lin Purse
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
Walker also appeared to arouse the froideur of French Gates, who was the foundation’s co-chair.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 8, 2026
“Depositing the money all at once would probably arouse less suspicion with the bank than making a continuing series of deposits just under $10,000,” says Mark Luscombe, principal analyst for Wolters Kluwer Tax & Accounting.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 9, 2025
Ethan must hide his intentions so as to not arouse suspicion, but his behavior is highly irregular, and folks who know him notice.
From Salon ● Dec. 13, 2024
Mr Foord, MP for Tiverton and Honiton, had said the links "serve to arouse suspicion and undermine trust".
From BBC ● Apr. 8, 2024
While she napped, we would creep past her bed, afraid to arouse the slumbering master.
From "The Color of Water: A Black Man's Tribute to His White Mother" by James McBride
“This is an issue that arouses real passion,” said Rep. Seth Magaziner, a half-Jewish Rhode Island congressman navigating the same post-Oct. 7th currents.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 8, 2026
It arouses particularly strong emotions in a city which prides itself on its architectural conservation.
From BBC ● Jul. 11, 2025
Similarly the terms “death tax” versus “estate tax” arouses different emotions … and the list goes on and on.
From Seattle Times ● Mar. 16, 2023
We had been prepared, in some preshow remarks, for “optional audience participation,” a prospect that usually arouses anxiety.
From New York Times ● Feb. 24, 2023
The author then must furiously try to minimize what she has been saying, which only arouses the reader’s suspicions.
From "The Sense of Style" by Steven Pinker
Because of the suspicions aroused by the complaints, she said, she lost a job.
From MarketWatch ● Jun. 30, 2026
The laughter it aroused was a loud, continuous, falling-off-the-couch, dangerous-for-fear-of-heart-attack laughter.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 14, 2025
They did not look as gaunt as the hostages freed a week earlier - their appearance had aroused anger in Israel and elsewhere.
From BBC ● Feb. 15, 2025
Yet Hansen has since aroused controversy, such as when he argued in 2000 that non-carbon dioxide greenhouse gases like methane play a large role in climate change.
From Salon ● Feb. 6, 2025
“Now the king’s suspicions are aroused, and he is as dangerous as a baited bear. It is bad enough that Hamlet rages like a madman.”
From "Ophelia" by Lisa Klein
The surreal prospect of U.S. and European allies shooting at each other on Greenland sent stock and bond markets sliding, arousing fears that European investors in U.S. government debt could back away.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 24, 2026
"The continuation of the trial is tearing us apart from within, arousing fierce divisions, intensifying rifts," the premier said in a video statement, referring to the split between his supporters and opponents.
From Barron's ● Nov. 30, 2025
Their only sin, as things stand, is arousing disgust.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 1, 2025
He drew inspiration from works at Kirkcaldy Galleries, studying paintings from artists such as Samuel Peploe and William McTaggart so intently that he feared arousing the suspicions of gallery staff.
From BBC ● Mar. 3, 2025
She did all this without arousing even the slightest of my suspicions.
From "Kaffir Boy: An Autobiography" by Mark Mathabane
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
