provoking

[pruh-voh-king]

adjective

1. serving to provoke; causing annoyance.

Other Word Forms

• provokingly adverb
• unprovoking adjective
• unprovokingly adverb

Word History and Origins

Origin of provoking¹

First recorded in 1520–30; provoke + -ing ²

Example Sentences

They were motivated to clinch a deal without provoking the ire of YouTube TV’s base of nearly 10 million customers.

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He replaced the members of the vaccine advisory panel in June, and fired its chief Susan Monarez in late August, provoking a group of senior staff to resign in protest.

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In August last year, seven TikTokers were sentenced to six months in prison by a court in the capital, Mogadishu, for provoking civil unrest and spreading immorality.

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Professors and journalists, too, are facing punishment for their comments, provoking a debate over so-called cancel culture.

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“These occupations occurred for a range of reasons,” he wrote, “and often started out suppressing violence, but they ended up provoking or exacerbating widespread civil unrest, political violence and terrorism…Things usually escalate.”

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