inflammatory
Americanadjective
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tending to arouse anger, hostility, passion, etc..
inflammatory speeches.
- Synonyms:
- provocative, incendiary, fiery
-
Pathology. of or caused by inflammation.
adjective
-
characterized by or caused by inflammation
-
tending to arouse violence, strong emotion, etc
Other Word Forms
- inflammatorily adverb
- noninflammatory adjective
- subinflammatory adjective
Etymology
Origin of inflammatory
First recorded in 1725–35; from Latin inflammāt(us) “kindled” (past participle of inflammāre “to kindle”; inflame ) + -ory 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.
The author argues that Bovino’s inflammatory rhetoric and theatrical enforcement style backfired, with his unsubstantiated claim that slain ICU nurse Alex Pretti wanted to “massacre law enforcement” particularly damaging public perception of immigration enforcement efforts.
From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 27, 2026
"In addition, LC-Mo correlated with the severity of fatigue and respiratory symptoms and was associated with elevated cytokine levels in blood plasma, which are an indicator of inflammatory processes in the body."
From Science Daily • Mar. 26, 2026
Petrol retailers have strongly denied price-gouging, and earlier this month criticised the government for using "inflammatory language".
From BBC • Mar. 24, 2026
His inflammatory comments have gotten him suspended from X on several occasions.
From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 20, 2026
It was obviously a ploy to distract me and keep me from doing anything else inflammatory in the districts.
From "Catching Fire" by Suzanne Collins
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.
