inflammatory
Americanadjective
-
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
Etymology
Origin of inflammatory
First recorded in 1725–35; from Latin inflammāt(us) “kindled” (past participle of inflammāre “to kindle”; see inflame) + -ory 1
Explanation
In medical terms, something that is inflammatory causes a local reaction that shows up by swelling, heat, pain, and redness. If you are stung by a bee, you may have an acute inflammatory reaction to the sting. The adjective inflammatory also refers to something that excites anger, violence, rebellion, or similar strong emotions, in many cases referring to speech or writing. If you are a politician, inflammatory speeches may be one tool you use to incite your constituents to vote against the corruption of your opponent. After all, a stirring speech about rights people may lose if an election goes a certain way is more likely to get out the vote than a more understated discussion.
Vocabulary lists containing inflammatory
The Vocabulary.com Top 1000
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The SAT: Words to Capture Tone, List 5
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The New SAT: Words to Capture Tone
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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.
Inflammatory bowel disease, which includes ulcerative colitis and Crohn's disease, has not been studied extensively when it comes to diet.
From Science Daily • Apr. 3, 2026
The reality star ended her post with the hashtags #ibd, which stands for Inflammatory Bowel Disease, #stomalife, and #ulcerativecolitis.
From BBC • Apr. 9, 2024
Inflammatory Bowel Disease is a common chronic condition among cats, managed with medication and diet.
From Salon • Mar. 5, 2024
Inflammatory bowel disease is a group of chronic gastrointestinal disorders with almost 8 million people diagnosed worldwide and 80% of all individuals not experiencing lasting remission, Roche said.
From Reuters • Oct. 23, 2023
Inflammatory products, as pus and fibrin, were especially prone to become thus transformed, as well as other relatively transitory materials of new formation—viz. tubercle and parts of various tumors.
From A System of Practical Medicine by American Authors, Vol. I Volume 1: Pathology and General Diseases by Various
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.
