How to Use inflate in a Sentence

inflate

verb
  • We used a pump to inflate the raft.
  • Rapid economic growth may cause prices to inflate.
  • Economists warn that rapid economic growth could inflate prices.
  • Increased competition has inflated salaries among professional athletes.
  • The whole thing is easy to set up—inflate, fill, and add your ice.
    — Brigitt Earley, Glamour, 4 Mar. 2024
  • They're shipped to you flat and come with a straw to inflate and string to hang.
    — Mariah Thomas, Good Housekeeping, 13 Oct. 2022
  • Bands around their legs that inflate like blood pressure cuffs help.
    — Robert Faturechi, ProPublica, 2 Jan. 2020
  • That’s what chefs are forced to choose between as food prices inflate.
    — Gwendolyn Wu, San Francisco Chronicle, 29 Nov. 2021
  • No need to wrestle with poles or even inflate a sleeping pad.
    — Erica Zazo, Outside, 14 Oct. 2025
  • But its payout growth will inflate the yield on a buy made today.
    — Brett Owens, Forbes, 29 Sep. 2021
  • But the price of other goods has kept inflating over the past year.
    — Zachary Halaschak, Washington Examiner, 12 July 2023
  • Its supply is fixed, so it can’t be inflated at will.
    — Luke Xie, MSNBC Newsweek, 10 Oct. 2025
  • Need to inflate a mattress or blast away debris?
    — Connie Etemadi, USA Today, 22 Aug. 2025
  • Or as if the screen had inflated to a sphere with him at its most forward part.
    — Rob Pegoraro, PC Magazine, 23 May 2025
  • Plenty of parks inflate homers more, none come close on doubles.
    — Tony Blengino, Forbes, 1 June 2022
  • Second, the bones are large and look like they’ve been inflated.
    — Meghan Bartels, Scientific American, 2 Aug. 2023
  • But also more tanking teams to inflate the record.
    — Ira Winderman, Sun Sentinel, 11 Apr. 2026
  • If your tortilla doesn’t inflate, the culprit might be a small tear in the seam.
    — Haneen J. Iqbal, Bon Appétit, 2 Feb. 2023
  • Was his fee inflated like Woltemade’s?
    — Chris Waugh, New York Times, 1 Oct. 2025
  • Make inflating tires, balls, and wheels simple, fast and stress-free.
    — ABC News, 13 June 2026
  • This style is inflated in two breaths and it can be folded up and packed away when not in use.
    — Lydia Mansel, Travel + Leisure, 11 Oct. 2024
  • Prices don’t feel over-inflated like most minibars.
    — Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 17 Jan. 2026
  • Relax near the water or inflate a pool float and float on the river.
    — Isabel Garcia, House Beautiful, 5 Mar. 2020
  • Do not inflate your tires to the pressure listed on the tire itself.
    — Leada Gore | [email protected], al, 20 Dec. 2022
  • Adding four programs of any kind is solely to inflate the value of what is left.
    — Jeremy Cluff, The Arizona Republic, 13 Feb. 2023
  • At this point, lift up the skimmer so the tortilla can inflate like a balloon.
    — Haneen J. Iqbal, Bon Appétit, 2 Feb. 2023
  • The smoothest way to do that is to inflate the price of real estate and the stock market.
    — Clem Chambers, Forbes, 25 Jan. 2022
  • This spa inflates within minutes and heats quickly as well.
    — Bestreviews, Mercury News, 16 June 2026
  • Make sure that the spare tire is properly inflated and the lug wrench and jack are still in the car.
    — John Paul, The Providence Journal, 30 Jan. 2026
  • The above-ground pool inflates in 30 minutes and can hold eight or more people.
    — Veronica Graham, Better Homes & Gardens, 12 June 2023

Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'inflate.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Last Updated: