inflate

[ in-fleyt ]

/ ɪnˈfleɪt /

Save This Word!

See synonyms for: inflate / inflated on Thesaurus.com

verb (used with object), in·flat·ed, in·flat·ing.

to distend; swell or puff out; dilate: The king cobra inflates its hood.

to cause to expand or distend with air or gas: to inflate a balloon.

to puff up with pride, satisfaction, etc.

to elate.

Economics. to expand (money, prices, an economy, etc.) unduly in amount, value, or size; affect with inflation.

verb (used without object), in·flat·ed, in·flat·ing.

to become inflated.

to increase, especially suddenly and substantially: The $10 subscription has inflated to $25.

OPPOSITES FOR inflate

1 deflate.

See antonyms for inflate on Thesaurus.com

QUIZ

ALL IN FAVO(U)R OF THIS BRITISH VS. AMERICAN ENGLISH QUIZ

There's an ocean of difference between the way people speak English in the US vs. the UK. Are your language skills up to the task of telling the difference? Let's find out!

Question 1 of 7

True or false? British English and American English are only different when it comes to slang words.

true

false

TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

Origin of inflate

First recorded in 1500–20; from Latin inflātus, past participle of inflāre “to blow on or into, puff out,” equivalent to in- in-² + flā- blow² + -tus past participle suffix

synonym study for inflate

1. See expand.

OTHER WORDS FROM inflate

in·flat·er, in·fla·tor, nouno·ver·in·flate, verb (used with object), o·ver·in·flat·ed, o·ver·in·flat·ing.re·in·flate, verb, re·in·flat·ed, re·in·flat·ing.

Words nearby inflate

inflammation, inflammatory, inflammatory bowel disease, “In Flanders Fields”, inflatable, inflate, inflated, inflation, inflationary, inflationary gap, inflationary spiral

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use inflate in a sentence

We can place limits on stock buybacks and bailouts so companies are forced to be responsible with their money instead of using it to inflate their share prices or line the pockets of executives—many of whom are already overpaid.
How we can save small business from coronavirus-induced extinction|matthewheimer|September 10, 2020|Fortune
Popular trades become crowded trades, inflating asset bubbles.
Global stocks climb—and futures jump—after Tuesday’s sell-off|Bernhard Warner|September 9, 2020|Fortune
It’s also the product of a strategy of endorsing candidates who are already in a good position to win — perhaps with the explicit goal of inflating his top-line win rate, and therefore his reputation.
Almost Everyone Trump Endorses Wins Their Primary … But Is He Padding His Record?|Nathaniel Rakich (nathaniel.rakich@fivethirtyeight.com)|August 26, 2020|FiveThirtyEight
The issue this month is that many teachers were laid off earlier than usual this summer, which may have artificially inflated July’s jobs numbers.
Yes, Unemployment Fell. But The Recovery Seems To Be Slowing Down.|Neil Paine (neil.paine@fivethirtyeight.com)|August 7, 2020|FiveThirtyEight

Then the blob can inflate into a finished house in 45 minutes.
Larvaceans’ underwater ‘snot palaces’ boast elaborate plumbing|Susan Milius|June 15, 2020|Science News
Does it matter whether Taylor Swift wants me to inflate my Internet notoriety by doing a dumb thing where I lip sync to her music?
Death of the Author by Viral Infection: In Defense of Taylor Swift, Digital Doomsayer|Arthur Chu|December 3, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Otherwise, there's a tendency for people with small businesses to inflate the expenses of the business to match the income.
The Taxman Cometh|Megan McArdle|April 30, 2013|DAILY BEAST
Apropos inflation, the government could try to inflate its way out of this crisis, covering the deficit by printing money.
Fischer King Departs|Bernard Avishai|January 31, 2013|DAILY BEAST
But could this invoking of the words of the Godfather of Soul be a belated effort to inflate these flat polling numbers?
Why Mitt Romney’s Use of James Brown Annoys Black Voters|Mansfield Frazier|August 31, 2012|DAILY BEAST
You have to add a lot of minor traffic violators and visa overstayers to inflate that figure to 94 percent.
Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel Is Latest to Reject ‘Secure Communities’ Immigration Law|Robert M. Morgenthau|July 13, 2012|DAILY BEAST
Only their bubbs were intact, but there was nothing with which to inflate them.
The Planet Strappers|Raymond Zinke Gallun
Away with these words which inflate vanity and wound charity.
The Lives of the Saints, Volume III (of 16): March|Sabine Baring-Gould
His care was not so much to inflate the rent-roll as to get in all the ready-money he could.
The Weird Sisters, Volume I (of 3)|Richard Dowling
They could flatten and drift about in the water, or they could inflate and rise in the air.
The Scapegoat|Richard Maples
By steady practice at his little pipe, he in about a year got so that he could inflate five whole inches.
Harper's Young People, December 16, 1879|Various

British Dictionary definitions for inflate

inflate

/ (ɪnˈfleɪt) /

verb

to expand or cause to expand by filling with gas or airshe needed to inflate the tyres

(tr) to cause to increase excessively; puff up; swellto inflate one's opinion of oneself

(tr) to cause inflation of (prices, money, etc)

(tr) to raise in spirits; elate

(intr) to undergo economic inflation

Derived forms of inflate

inflatedly, adverbinflatedness, nouninflater or inflator, noun

Word Origin for inflate

C16: from Latin inflāre to blow into, from flāre to blow

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

inflate

OPPOSITES FOR inflate

Origin of inflate

synonym study for inflate

OTHER WORDS FROM inflate

Words nearby inflate

Words related to inflate

How to use inflate in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for inflate

Derived forms of inflate

Word Origin for inflate