excite
Americanverb (used with object)
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excites,
present (3rd person singular)
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excited,
past participle, past
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exciting
present participle
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to arouse or stir up the emotions or feelings of.
to excite a person to anger; actions that excited his father's wrath.
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to arouse or stir up (emotions or feelings).
to excite jealousy or hatred.
- Synonyms:
- evoke
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to cause; awaken.
to excite interest or curiosity.
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to stir to action; provoke or stir up.
to excite a dog by baiting him.
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Physiology. to stimulate.
to excite a nerve.
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Electricity. to supply with electricity for producing electric activity or a magnetic field.
to excite a dynamo.
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Physics. to raise (an atom, molecule, etc.) to an excited state.
verb
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to arouse (a person) to strong feeling, esp to pleasurable anticipation or nervous agitation
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to arouse or elicit (an emotion, response, etc); evoke
her answers excited curiosity
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to cause or bring about; stir up
to excite a rebellion
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to arouse sexually
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physiol to cause a response in or increase the activity of (an organ, tissue, or part); stimulate
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to raise (an atom, molecule, electron, nucleus, etc) from the ground state to a higher energy level
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to supply electricity to (the coils of a generator or motor) in order to create a magnetic field
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to supply a signal to a stage of an active electronic circuit
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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excitesimple
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excitessimple
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have excitedperfect
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has excitedperfect
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am excitingprogressive
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are excitingprogressive
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is excitingprogressive
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have been excitingperfect progressive
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has been excitingperfect progressive
Past
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excitedsimple
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had excitedperfect
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was excitingprogressive
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were excitingprogressive
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had been excitingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of excite
First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English, from Latin excitāre, from ex- ex- 1 + citāre “to move repeatedly, set in motion, summon” (from ciēre “to arouse, cause to go, move”)
Explanation
To excite is to stimulate, animate, or energize. The return of your favorite TV show might excite you, and winning millions of dollars in the lottery will definitely excite you. While a new book by a beloved author excites one person, and an extra scoop of ice cream excites another, it might take something like a free trip to Hawaii to excite you. In quantum mechanics, the word excite takes on a more scientific meaning: to raise something, like an atom or an electron, to a higher level of energy. The Latin root of excite is excitare, "rouse, call out, or summon forth."
Vocabulary lists containing excite
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:
"I have no desire or ambition to be president of FIFA. That doesn't excite me," he said.
From Barron's ● Jul. 22, 2026
“I’ve been lucky enough that I’m trying to just chase those things that excite me creatively. And so far I’ve gotten to do that. Hopefully I can keep it up.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 18, 2026
So far, its apps initiative has failed to excite, and it seems unlikely it can deliver a device that will convince consumers to trade in iPhones.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 5, 2026
Conference League football would do little to improve finances or excite fans used to facing Europe's elite.
From BBC ● May 16, 2026
Inevitably, as Mathew Carey realized, the fear in Philadelphia began to excite “the terror of the inhabitants of all neighboring states.”
From "An American Plague: The True and Terrifying Story of the Yellow Fever Epidemic of 1793" by Jim Murphy
“But it excites me that young directors are exploring the genre’s possibilities.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 30, 2026
“I was a No. 10, what excites me is scoring goals…I was a leader on the pitch, and I’ll be a leader through what I’ve achieved.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 28, 2026
"Nothing excites Trump more than the power of saying 'you're fired,'" Litman said, referencing the catchphrase Trump popularized in his former role as a reality competition show host.
From Barron's ● Jul. 3, 2026
The key to the style of campaigning that won out on Tuesday, according to Andrabi, is having a vision for what politics can deliver that excites people.
From Salon ● Jun. 26, 2026
It excites him to hear himself referred to that way.
From "The Namesake" by Jhumpa Lahiri
“Grateful, appreciative, excited to own something that’s as iconic as the L.A. Lakers,” Iger told the California Post.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 15, 2026
"The reason why people are so excited and so experimental is basically the ability to think beyond just the flavours that have been offered by the Western market for the past two or three decades."
From BBC ● Aug. 14, 2026
"It's the product of years of work by a dedicated, international team of astronomers. We're excited to share DR20 with the world and see what the community discovers with it."
From Science Daily ● Aug. 14, 2026
He was excited and cheerful and willing to share his opinions.
From Slate ● Aug. 14, 2026
Courtney seemed so excited at the exciting parts, too.
From "Firegirl" by Tony Abbott
Heisenberg: Munoz is arguably the most exciting Crystal Palace FPL asset because of the sheer number of routes to points.
From BBC ● Aug. 14, 2026
Here are the new targets that are exciting Wall Street.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 14, 2026
Riley said it has been exciting to have Rob Ryan return for a second year to be the assistant head coach for the defense, working alongside Patterson.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 14, 2026
"The topic remained so exciting that it became my doctoral thesis," says the biologist.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 14, 2026
Spring was a happy, exciting time, and yet Roz was distracted.
From "The Wild Robot Escapes" by Peter Brown
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.
