instigate

[in-sti-geyt]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR instigate ON THESAURUS.COM

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

to cause by incitement; foment: to instigate a quarrel.

to urge, provoke, or incite to some action or course: to instigate the people to revolt.

Nearby words

Origin of instigate

1535–45; < Latin instīgātus past participle of instīgāre to goad on, impel, equivalent to in- in-² + -stīg- goad, prick (akin to stigma, stick²) + -ātus -ate¹

SYNONYMS FOR instigate

1. arouse, provoke. 2. induce, stimulate, encourage, push; initiate, start.

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR instigate ON THESAURUS.COM

Related forms

in·sti·gat·ing·ly, adverbin·sti·ga·tive, adjectivein·sti·ga·tor, in·sti·gant

[in-sti-guhnt] /ˈɪn stɪ gənt/, nounun·in·sti·gat·ed, adjective

un·in·sti·ga·tive, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for instigating

Nor do I believe that was what the president was instigating.
The South Sudan Clashes Are No Tribal War|Valentino Deng|December 30, 2013|DAILY BEAST
Instigating military involvement without considering these issues is nothing more than a short-sighted action.
A Plea for Peace in Syria|Majid Rafizadeh|September 26, 2013|DAILY BEAST
Australian brand Solid Gold Bomb was caught hawking rape-themed T-shirts on Amazon's UK site, instigating public horror.
Rape Slogan T-Shirts Spark Outrage|Misty White Sidell|March 4, 2013|DAILY BEAST
Bakkar and his fellow Salafists were blamed by some for instigating the chaos, though they condemned the violence from the start.
Nader Bakkar, Salafist Spokeman, on the Embassy Riots and Bridge Building in a Post–Arab Spring Egypt|Mike Giglio|September 25, 2012|DAILY BEAST

But he said he later saw a police report accusing him of instigating the violence and organizing a riot outside the courtroom.
Chess Champ Garry Kasparov: ‘They Were Trying to Break My Leg’|Eli Lake|August 17, 2012|DAILY BEAST
He has so far succeeded in instigating the Boer nation to acts which involve the forfeiture of their special heirlooms.
Origin of the Anglo-Boer War Revealed (2nd ed.)|C. H. Thomas
If I were going to open the letter and use its contents, then you might charge me with instigating theft.
Jennie Baxter, Journalist|Robert Barr
They were at the bottom of the uprising, they were instigating the slaves to similar outbreaks.
William Lloyd Garrison|Archibald H. Grimke
His merit in that eminence was, by instigating a tyrant to injustice, to provoke a people to rebellion.
The Ontario Readers: The High School Reader, 1886|Ministry of Education
Many of them were firmly persuaded that the French were instigating the Indians to attack and cut them off.
The Oregon Trail|Francis Parkman, Jr.

British Dictionary definitions for instigating

instigate

verb (tr)

to bring about, as by incitement or urgingto instigate rebellion

to urge on to some drastic or inadvisable action

Derived Formsinstigatingly, adverbinstigation, nouninstigative, adjectiveinstigator, noun

Word Origin for instigate

C16: from Latin instīgāre to stimulate, incite; compare Greek stizein to prick

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

Word Origin and History for instigating

instigate

1540s, back-formation from instigation or else from Latin instigatus, past participle of instigare "to urge on, incite" (see instigation). Related: Instigated; instigates; instigating.