noun
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the act of provoking or inciting
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something that causes indignation, anger, etc
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English criminal law words or conduct that incite a person to attack another
Other Word Forms
- nonprovocation noun
- overprovocation noun
- preprovocation noun
- provocational adjective
Etymology
Origin of provocation
1375–1425; late Middle English < Latin prōvocātiōn- (stem of prōvocātiō ) a calling forth, equivalent to prōvocāt ( us ) (past participle of prōvocāre to provoke; -ate 1 ) + -iōn- -ion
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.
Themes kick up that you couldn’t have guessed from the first act: provocations about class and caste, continent-spanning capitalism and surveillance states.
From Los Angeles Times
Mother, who had been eavesdropping from the other room, hissed, “Jozef! Stop this provocation. You love each other.”
From Literature
"He probably wants to endear himself to his father," Minde tells the BBC, but adds that some of the posts are deliberate "provocations".
From BBC
In putting forward this charge, the prosecution relied on evidence found on former military intelligence chief Yeo In-hyung's phone that contained words suggesting potential provocations.
From BBC
Even having made two single-season streaming series in the interim, he has seemingly been missing in action, the absence of his visual flair, bent humor and taste for provocation leaving an empty space in theaters.
From Los Angeles Times
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.
