evoke
Americanverb (used with object)
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evokes,
present (3rd person singular)
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evoked,
past participle, past
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evoking
present participle
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to call up or produce (memories, feelings, etc.).
to evoke a memory.
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to elicit or draw forth.
His comment evoked protests from the shocked listeners.
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to call up; cause to appear; summon.
to evoke a spirit from the dead.
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to produce or suggest through artistry and imagination a vivid impression of reality.
a short passage that manages to evoke the smells, colors, sounds, and shapes of that metropolis.
verb
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to call or summon up (a memory, feeling, etc), esp from the past
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to call forth or provoke; produce; elicit
his words evoked an angry reply
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to cause (spirits) to appear; conjure up
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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evokesimple
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evokessimple
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have evokedperfect
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has evokedperfect
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am evokingprogressive
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are evokingprogressive
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is evokingprogressive
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have been evokingperfect progressive
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has been evokingperfect progressive
Past
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evokedsimple
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had evokedperfect
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was evokingprogressive
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were evokingprogressive
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had been evokingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of evoke
First recorded in 1615–25; from Latin ēvocāre, from ē- e- 1 + vocāre “to call” (akin to vōx voice )
Explanation
The verb evoke most commonly means to bring a feeling, memory, or picture into the mind. When you visit your old elementary school, the smells, sounds, and colors there can evoke memories from the past. Similarly, a certain reaction can be evoked by words or actions, as in "His comments evoked anger in the community." A near synonym is elicit, as in "No matter how many different ways the detective questioned the suspect, he could not elicit any response. Evoke was borrowed from Latin evocare, from the prefix e- "out," plus vocare "to call."
Vocabulary lists containing evoke
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The SAT: Language of the Test, List 6
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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:
Since settling into the home, Biles has offered several glimpses inside the lavish property—including a peek at their luxurious bedroom, which was designed to evoke the feeling of a five-star hotel.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 28, 2026
Costume designer Colleen Atwood devised the ensemble, while Ed Cubberly created the famous fiberglass muzzle, deliberately leaving it uncoated to evoke the look of dried, taut skin.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 25, 2026
Berridge says the ritual could produce a "dopamine hit and strong 'wanting', and also evoke faint conditioned 'liking'".
From BBC ● Sep. 23, 2026
Nevertheless, the mere fact that their children would participate in a study examining the consequences of their 9/11 experiences appeared to evoke concerns among some parents.
From Slate ● Sep. 11, 2026
Perhaps once he could evoke gales of laughter with a quip, but the sea had taken that power from him, along with half his wits and all his memory.
From "A Clash of Kings" by George R.R. Martin
Every work in the show evokes a memory for his daughters as well.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 15, 2026
In its weather, its soundtrack and the haunted stare of Jake Gyllenhaal, it evokes the weeks after 9/11, even if it anticipated them.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 11, 2026
The hostile Vegas spotlight, meanwhile, evokes memories of Benn senior's ferocious 1995 battle with Gerald McClellan.
From BBC ● Sep. 11, 2026
What they’re seeing is pretty grim—a onetime superpower that no longer evokes much respect or fear.
From Slate ● Sep. 4, 2026
The sewing kit wrapped in cheesecloth evokes the Byrnes’ grim home.
From "Orphan Train" by Christina Baker Kline
We’re looking back at the headbands, earrings, shoes, sunglasses and bags that evoked L.A. most — captured backstage by Image contributing photographer Tyler Matthew Oyer.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 14, 2026
Marco Piemontese’s striking period costumes conjured the artists’ milieu, and Marcus Doshi’s lighting evoked both festivity and the tragedy of the ending.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 10, 2026
A group of people were gathered around a large dining table beneath a massive chandelier of antler, a tableau that evoked some kind of Viking summit.
From Salon ● Aug. 9, 2026
In its ruling, the ASA said the woman was wearing "fashionable clothing and accessories standing in front of a scooter next to a body of water, which the ASA considered evoked an aspirational holiday lifestyle".
From BBC ● Aug. 4, 2026
One of the main commodities returned on those voyages of centuries ago were travelers’ tales,* stories of alien lands and ex otic creatures that evoked our sense of wonder and stimulated future exploration.
From "Cosmos" by Carl Sagan
“Interruptions are an indication that you’re winning,” said Tarlov, evoking the pithy chapter summaries in “I Disagree.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 14, 2026
In addition to the variety of instruments evoking the sounds of nature, it incorporated breathwork, vocal exercises and a small amount of physical sensation: a refreshing spritz of rose water.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 28, 2026
Launching their new partnership with Oxen, Hull City have released a very retro kit for the new campaign, evoking the shirts the Tigers wore during the late seventies.
From BBC ● Aug. 9, 2026
"We have lived long and endured for 60 years and going," he said, evoking the famous motto of Leonard Nimoy's Mr Spock.
From Barron's ● Jul. 26, 2026
It is when confronted by the overwhelming signal of free molecules of endotoxin, evoking memories of vibrios in great numbers, that the limulus flies into panic, launches all his defenses at once, and destroys himself.
From "The Lives of a Cell" by Lewis Thomas
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.
