stimulate
Americanverb (used with object)
-
to rouse to action or effort, as by encouragement or pressure; spur on; incite.
A childhood summer learning program was the first thing to stimulate his interest in mathematics.
-
Physiology, Medicine/Medical. to excite (a nerve, gland, etc.) to its functional activity.
-
to invigorate (a person) by a food or beverage containing a stimulant such as coffee or tea.
verb (used without object)
verb
-
(tr; usually passive) to fill (a person) with ideas or enthusiasm
he was stimulated by the challenge
-
(tr) physiol to excite (a nerve, organ, etc) with a stimulus
-
to encourage (something) to start or progress further
a cut in interest rates should help stimulate economic recovery
Related Words
See animate.
Other Word Forms
- interstimulate verb (used with object)
- nonstimulable adjective
- overstimulate verb
- prestimulate verb (used with object)
- restimulate verb (used with object)
- self-stimulated adjective
- stimulability noun
- stimulable adjective
- stimulater noun
- stimulation noun
- stimulative adjective
- stimulator noun
- superstimulate verb (used with object)
- unstimulable adjective
- unstimulated adjective
Etymology
Origin of stimulate
First recorded in 1540–50; from Latin stimulāt(us) “goaded” (past participle of stimulāre “to goad, incite,” from stimulus stimulus ( def. ) ); -ate 1
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.
And speaking of positives, write another list with the parts of your job you do like, whether it’s a colleague who makes you laugh or responsibilities that stimulate your creativity.
From Barron's
The moves closely track the way in which China built up other industries, such as electric vehicles, which benefited from incentives for buyers to help stimulate demand.
“Even if the Fed lowers policy rates to stimulate the economy, borrowers may not get as much benefit from this on new mortgages or even with auto financing, which covers two- to five-year periods.”
From MarketWatch
If I’ve been stimulated, doing a puzzle for a couple of hours is a great way to decompress.
From Los Angeles Times
The bigger risk is that Ms. Takaichi’s plans would do little to stimulate the productive investment Japan needs for economic growth.
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.
