prodding

[prod-ing]

noun

1. the act of poking or jabbing with or as if with something pointed.

   Finally, after five minutes and some prodding with a stick, the cow moved out of the road.

2. the act of trying to incite someone to action, as if by poking; nagging or urging.

   The National Research Council finally succeeded in its assigned mission—albeit with some prodding from a public interest group and the courts.

adjective

1. poking, urging, or nagging.

   It wasn’t until two days later, under the prodding questions of close relatives, that she revealed the true source of the ring.

Word History and Origins

Origin of prodding¹

First recorded in 1840–45; prod + -ing ¹ for the noun senses; prod + -ing ² for the adjective sense

Example Sentences

After working for several years as a federal public defender, she decided to run for judge at the prodding of a mentor.

From Los Angeles Times

The final straw came when a cleaner was filmed restraining the elderly man and violently shaking the bed frame before prodding him with a walking stick.

From BBC

The reductions in water use will be politically difficult, Castle said, but she noted that the seven states have a history “with prodding from the federal government, to ultimately come to agreement around solutions.”

From Los Angeles Times

At a Senate hearing last year, after being prodding by Senator Hawley, Mr Zuckerberg apologised to families who claimed their loved ones had been harmed by the company's products.

From BBC

Musk went around the table, prodding the other members of the team as they one-upped one another with outrageous examples of their own.

From Salon

Related Words

• goad 
• motivate 
• prompt 
• propel 
• provoke 
• remind 
• spur 
• stimulate