INCITING Synonyms: 116 Similar and Opposite Words

inciting 1 of 2

adjective

as in provocative

serving or likely to arouse a strong reaction a deliberately inciting comment questioning someone's manhood started the brawl

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

inciting

2 of 2

verb

present participle of incite

as in provoking

to bring (something volatile or intense) into being the rock band's failure to show up incited a riot, as the crowd had waited for hours

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in encouraging

to rouse to strong feeling or action the demagogue's fiery rant incited the crowd to riot

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of inciting

Adjective

The show will begin with Pam grieving the loss of young Jason, who supposedly drowned in the town lake — the inciting incident of the franchise. — Ben Rosenstock, Vulture, 10 Sep. 2026 Morocco arrested multiple people who circulated the inciting statements, Interior Ministry spokesperson Rachid El Khalfi said. — Robert McGreevy, FOXNews.com, 15 Aug. 2026 Societies throughout history have punished language deemed blasphemous, seditious, inciting or slanderous. — Paul Quigley, The Conversation, 13 July 2026 Not an inciting event for troll armadas to threaten the people involved. — Brian Hamilton, New York Times, 2 July 2026 Does the opening episode need an inciting incident within the first few minutes to draw in audiences? — Michael Schneider, Variety, 22 June 2026 Although more research is needed, GLP-1 drugs trigger metabolic pathways that could be important in regulating inflammation, which is known to be an inciting factor in many different cancers. — Omer Awan, Forbes.com, 13 June 2026 What was the setting and the all-important inciting incident? — Literary Hub, 11 June 2026 Of course, the pivotal thing was to create an inciting incident that propels the story without clunky exposition. — Anne Thompson, IndieWire, 23 May 2026

Verb

He was sentenced to six years for inciting terrorism and extremism. — Ivana Kottasová, CNN Money, 21 Oct. 2026 And then all of a sudden this inciting event happens, and they’re thrown, unprepared, into this world. — Lexy Perez, HollywoodReporter, 11 Oct. 2026 Critics have accused his party, La France Insoumise, (LFI), of seeking to use the unrest to score points in the presidential campaign and of inciting violence. — Greg Norman-Diamond, FOXNews.com, 6 Oct. 2026 Her claim of doors being opened, meanwhile, is an act of fear-inciting misinformation, for the doors have been open for a long time to trans women, with no pattern of damage done. — Literary Hub, 5 Oct. 2026 Reportedly, the nation has framed it as a necessary step to counter growing counterspace threats from Russia and China, while Beijing has warned against inciting a space arms race. — Mrigakshi Dixit, Interesting Engineering, 15 Sep. 2026 Former grand mufti Ahmad Badreddine Hassoun, an Assad loyalist who was vocally in support of the government's policies, was convicted of inciting violence and justifying murder. — ABC News, 24 Aug. 2026 Targeting the wrong group could end up inciting an international incident. — Henry Larson, NPR, 15 Aug. 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for inciting

Adjective

That wasn’t the only provocative subject that came up during the latest Weekend Update.

— K.J. Yossman, Variety, 24 Oct. 2026
Cold and bitter, yet still provocative, or at least trying to be.

— Sofia Franklyn, Vanity Fair, 22 Oct. 2026

Definition of provocative

Verb

In 2012 American entrepreneur Russ George spread roughly 100 tons of iron in the North Pacific, provoking international criticism that a commercial venture had begun geoengineering without adequate oversight.

— Alec Luhn, Scientific American, 20 Oct. 2026
The same principle applies to debates about religion, economics and virtually any subject capable of provoking strong emotions.

— Rabbi Bruce D. Forman, Sun Sentinel, 13 Oct. 2026

Definition of provoking

Adjective

The result is an urgent, propulsive song with a raw spirit and some of Pop’s most super-charged writing with deceptively simple lyrics about love and war, dripping with desperation.

— Debby Wolfinsohn, Entertainment Weekly, 7 July 2026
What Happens Next Greene is likely to continue stoking controversy by breaking with her party, as conversations around immigration remain charged and divisive.

— Alia Shoaib, MSNBC Newsweek, 13 Oct. 2025

Definition of charged

Browse Nearby Words

incites

inciting

incivility

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Style

“Inciting.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/inciting. Accessed 28 Oct. 2026.

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Synonyms of inciting

adjective

verb

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