Synonyms

foment

American

[foh-ment] / foʊˈmɛnt /

verb (used with object)

to instigate or foster (discord, rebellion, etc.); promote the growth or development of.

to foment trouble; to foment discontent.

Synonyms:

stimulate, encourage, excite, inflame, arouse, provoke, incite
to apply warm water or medicated liquid, ointments, etc., to (the surface of the body).

foment British

/ ˌfəʊmɛnˈteɪʃən, fəˈmɛnt /

verb

to encourage or instigate (trouble, discord, etc); stir up
med to apply heat and moisture to (a part of the body) to relieve pain and inflammation

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Usage

Both foment and ferment can be used to talk about stirring up trouble: he was accused of fomenting/fermenting unrest . Only ferment can be used intransitively or as a noun: his anger continued to ferment (not foment ); rural areas were unaffected by the ferment in the cities

Other Word Forms

fomentation noun
fomenter noun
unfomented adjective

Etymology

Origin of foment

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English fomenten, from Late Latin fōmentāre, verbal derivative of Latin fōmentum “soothing application, poultice,” contraction of unattested fōvimentum, equivalent to fōv(ēre) “to keep warm” + -i- -i- + -mentum -ment

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.

They can inflame internal and external tensions and foment uncertainty.

From Barron's • Mar. 7, 2026

What I didn’t anticipate was how hard it is to fill all the void, how the loss of work anxiety would foment a new anxiety.

From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 12, 2026

Those contests, like many others, involved months of trash-talking on both sides, and often foment internal warfare.

From Los Angeles Times • Dec. 11, 2025

The aim is to tackle disinformation and hate speech that can foment unrest and radicalise people.

From BBC • Mar. 1, 2025

Even as Tisquantum attempted to foment Indian distrust of Massasoit, he told the colonists that Massasoit was going to double-cross them by leading a joint attack on Plymouth with the Narragansett.

From "1491" by Charles C. Mann

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023