stimulate
Americanverb (used with object)
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stimulates,
present (3rd person singular)
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stimulated,
past participle, past
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stimulating
present participle
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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.
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Physiology, Medicine/Medical. to excite (a nerve, gland, etc.) to its functional activity.
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to invigorate (a person) by a food or beverage containing a stimulant such as coffee or tea.
verb (used without object)
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stimulates,
present (3rd person singular)
-
stimulated,
past participle, past
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stimulating
present participle
verb
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(tr; usually passive) to fill (a person) with ideas or enthusiasm
he was stimulated by the challenge
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(tr) physiol to excite (a nerve, organ, etc) with a stimulus
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to encourage (something) to start or progress further
a cut in interest rates should help stimulate economic recovery
Synonym Usage
See animate.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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stimulabilitynoun
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stimulaternoun
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stimulationnoun
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stimulatornoun
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overstimulateverb
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interstimulateverb (used with object)
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prestimulateverb (used with object)
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restimulateverb (used with object)
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superstimulateverb (used with object)
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nonstimulableadjective
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self-stimulatedadjective
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stimulableadjective
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stimulativeadjective
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unstimulableadjective
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unstimulatedadjective
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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stimulatesimple
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stimulatessimple
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have stimulatedperfect
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has stimulatedperfect
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am stimulatingprogressive
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are stimulatingprogressive
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is stimulatingprogressive
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have been stimulatingperfect progressive
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has been stimulatingperfect progressive
Past
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stimulatedsimple
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had stimulatedperfect
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was stimulatingprogressive
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were stimulatingprogressive
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had been stimulatingperfect progressive
Future
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. ) ); see -ate 1
Explanation
If the economy is starting to stall, the president can't just sit there. He has to stimulate—turn it on, bring it to life, perk it up. You can stimulate practically anything: a person, a conversation, a mind, or even the growth of a plant. Stimulate is often used to describe a physical or sexual sensation, but don't get bogged down in that kind of thinking. Often, a government will try to stimulate economic activity by creating a stimulus package. Or, say, for example, that I'm trying to sell my new song CD. In order to stimulate interest, I need to send out a sample song to all my friends. Unless, of course, my songs are no good.
Vocabulary lists containing stimulate
"The Tell-Tale Heart" by Edgar Allan Poe
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"The Tell-Tale Heart" by Edgar Allan Poe
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Game Changer
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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:
And that could stimulate more activity for companies involved in building and financing these projects, which will eventually trickle down to the broader economy, the Wells Fargo team said.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 10, 2026
They say vaccines today are more precise and stimulate the immune system with fewer antigens than vaccines in the past while protecting against more diseases.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 10, 2026
Determining how muscle stem cells use TRF2 differently from cells in other tissues could eventually help researchers stimulate tissue repair without also raising the risk of cancer.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 2, 2026
Approaches that stimulate the vagus nerve or improve gut health might eventually be investigated as ways to support memory and preserve cognitive function.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 29, 2026
“Well, what I always find is that when you take a break and move some muscles, it helps stimulate those brain cells.”
From "Maybe He Just Likes You" by Barbara Dee
Many contain large amounts of caffeine, which stimulates the central nervous system and makes you feel more awake.
From BBC ● Jun. 22, 2026
Reynoso said the betting "stimulates many senses" for the animals on top of providing entertainment for an audience giddy with excitement ahead of the world's biggest football bonanza.
From Barron's ● Jun. 6, 2026
Most forests remain nitrogen limited enough that additional nitrogen still stimulates biological activity.
From Science Daily ● Jun. 2, 2026
For starters, the policy rate is currently at the lower end of the estimated growth range for neutral, a level that neither stimulates or subtracts from growth.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 18, 2026
When it comes to the lure of technology and the way it stimulates people, there’s one more comparison that researchers widely cite.
From "A Deadly Wandering: A Mystery, a Landmark Investigation, and the Astonishing Science of Attention in the Digital Age" by Matt Richtel
Tests in animal models showed that BifidoSumIL-2 preferentially gathered inside tumors, stimulated immune activity, and slowed the growth of pancreatic cancer.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 19, 2026
“That’s really what stimulated the conversation of the possibility.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 26, 2026
Five years ago, Rhi had a procedure to put a sacral nerve stimulation system in place - where the nerves controlling the bowel can be stimulated with a device implanted under the skin.
From BBC ● May 13, 2026
This “Animal Farm” is ignorant of the fact that kids need to be stimulated by more than scatalogical humor to actually influence their perspectives, rather than cater to their existing tastes and knowledge.
From Salon ● May 3, 2026
I’ve written short stories in my mind, chuckling at my own humor, saddened or stimulated by structure or content.
From "Travels with Charley in Search of America" by John Steinbeck
Egg freezing involves stimulating the ovaries with hormone injections before mature eggs are surgically retrieved and preserved for possible future use through in vitro fertilization.
From Barron's ● Aug. 10, 2026
Unfortunately, much of the rest of the work here is less stimulating.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 7, 2026
On the other hand, variety can be stimulating.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 13, 2026
This hormone signals fullness to the brain, slowing digestion and stimulating the release of insulin.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 8, 2026
In this sense, statistics is to probability as engineering is to physics—an applied science based on a more intellectually stimulating foundational discipline.
From "Innumeracy: Mathematical Illiteracy and Its Consequences" by John Allen Paulos
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.
