induce
Americanverb (used with object)
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induces,
present (3rd person singular)
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induced,
past participle, past
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inducing
present participle
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to lead or move by persuasion or influence, as to some action or state of mind.
to induce a person to buy a raffle ticket.
- Antonyms:
- dissuade
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to bring about, produce, or cause.
That medicine will induce sleep.
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Physics. to produce (an electric current) by induction.
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Logic. to assert or establish (a proposition about a class of phenomena) on the basis of observations on a number of particular facts.
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Genetics. to increase expression of (a gene) by inactivating a negative control system or activating a positive control system; derepress.
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Biochemistry. to stimulate the synthesis of (a protein, especially an enzyme) by increasing gene transcription.
verb
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(often foll by an infinitive) to persuade or use influence on
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to cause or bring about
-
med to initiate or hasten (labour), as by administering a drug to stimulate uterine contractions
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obsolete logic to assert or establish (a general proposition, hypothesis, etc) by induction
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to produce (an electromotive force or electrical current) by induction
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to transmit (magnetism) by induction
Synonym Usage
See persuade.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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inducernoun
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preinduceverb (used with object)
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reinduceverb (used with object)
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inducibleadjective
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noninducibleadjective
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uninducibleadjective
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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inducesimple
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inducessimple
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have inducedperfect
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has inducedperfect
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am inducingprogressive
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are inducingprogressive
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is inducingprogressive
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have been inducingperfect progressive
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has been inducingperfect progressive
Past
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inducedsimple
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had inducedperfect
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was inducingprogressive
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were inducingprogressive
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had been inducingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of induce
First recorded in 1325–75; Middle English, from Latin indūcere “to lead or bring in, introduce,” equivalent to in- in- 2 + dūcere “to lead”; cf. adduce, deduce, reduce
Explanation
To induce is to move or lead someone to action. A promise of a lollipop can induce a toddler to do just about anything, even sit down and be polite to Aunt Edna. Older kids need something more substantial. Some people believe that if you offer someone a large enough sum of money, you could induce them to do almost anything. But a movie heroine might say to the villain, "Nothing could induce me to marry you. Not all the money in the world. Not if you were the last man on Earth!" Induce also means to stimulate the occurrence of something, such as medications used to induce vomiting, or to induce a pregnant woman to go into labor.
Vocabulary lists containing induce
Lead the Way: Duc and Duct
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This Week in Words: Feb. 25 - Mar. 2, 2018
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Franklin D. Roosevelt's First Inaugural Address (March 4, 1933), List 1
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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:
Section 301 allows a president to tariff as a targeted economic diplomacy measure to induce a foreign government to abandon a particular practice.
From Slate ● Aug. 27, 2026
"This promotes production of the metabolite N1-acetylspermidine, which contributes to the ability of butyrate-treated IEC-conditioned medium to induce IL-10 production in CD4⁺ T-cells."
From Science Daily ● Aug. 21, 2026
Delmer’s mission was to undermine enemy morale and induce uncertainty among Nazi leadership while ensuring his messages didn’t betray their true source.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 12, 2026
Though he knows both Ellis’ and Murphy’s work tends to induce “strong reactions,” he also hopes people will see beyond the “movie poster exterior.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 5, 2026
Meeting a king tends to induce a temporary but powerful amnesia.
From "The Inquisitor's Tale" by Adam Gidwitz
And while much of the movie induces sidesplitting guffaws, Tremaine said that producer and co-creator Spike Jonze was eager to highlight the sensitive beats shared between the cast.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 29, 2026
It is used in combination with a second drug misoprostol, which induces cramping.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 14, 2026
"A provider induces infringement if it actively encourages infringement through specific acts," it said.
From Barron's ● Mar. 25, 2026
"We showed that the complex actually induces blood-brain barrier leakage, when the proteins alone did not," Simões-Pires says.
From Science Daily ● Oct. 22, 2025
“The transmitter and the liquid that induces the simulation. The transmitter communicates information to the brain from the computer, and vice versa, and the liquid alters the brain to put it in a simulation state.”
From "Insurgent" by Veronica Roth
"We further found that conditioned medium from butyrate-treated IECs strongly induced IL-10-producing CD4+ T-cells in both mouse and human T-cell culture systems," Yu said.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 21, 2026
In May, Tyler was placed into an induced coma after having emergency intestinal surgery in Portugal, but later died "as a result of the illness that she was being treated for", her family said.
From BBC ● Aug. 16, 2026
Díaz induced Joey Ortiz to ground out to Mookie Betts at shortstop to end the game.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 15, 2026
It came just months after she was treated in intensive care after being placed in an induced coma following an emergency intestinal surgery.
From Barron's ● Aug. 15, 2026
Almost everyone danced but the twins, who could not be induced to separate during the brief period when one or the other should be whirling around the room in the arms of a man.
From "The Awakening" by Kate Chopin
“These episodes ended with an eventual reversal in investment, inducing economy-wide recessions,” the BIS said.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 28, 2026
It signals to every counterparty transacting with a designated party that it could be next, inducing it to sever its ties to Iranian-linked finance.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 9, 2026
Roberts turned to right-handed reliever Treinen, who walked Moreno but got out of the inning by inducing Arenado to fly out to left field.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 3, 2026
"The hypothesis is that it's the lycopene from the tomatoes and the isoflavones from the soy that's inducing the effect, so we didn't want to have a control that's just water," Cooperstone said.
From Science Daily ● May 30, 2026
In the absence of key nutrients, a severe chemical imbalance develops in the brain, inducing convulsions and hallucinations.
From "Into the Wild" by Jon Krakauer
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.
