inflicting

verb

present participle of inflict
as in imposing
to cause someone to accept or experience something unwanted The criminal inflicted a lifetime of distress on his unsuspecting victims.

Related Words

Relevance

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 inflicting The administration insists its strategy of inflicting economic pain is working. — Lauren Morganbesser, semafor.com, 23 Oct. 2026 He is charged with battery causing bodily harm and kidnapping and inflicting bodily harm upon or terrorizing a victim. — Steven Yablonski, CBS News, 20 Oct. 2026 That might be the best shot society has at preventing AI from inflicting serious harm, according to some industry experts. — Emily Forlini, Fortune, 13 Oct. 2026 Indeed, inflicting hardship on the population seems especially unlikely to change the calculus of the Iranian regime, given its willingness to kill thousands of protestors to stay in power. — Justin Bronk, Foreign Affairs, 13 Oct. 2026 Caruso has been charged with kidnapping, lewd or lascivious molestation, lewd or lascivious exhibition, luring or enticing a child, and child abuse inflicting mental injury. — Claire Heddles, Miami Herald, 6 Oct. 2026 Media coverage tends to focus on long-range air strikes Russia and Ukraine are inflicting deep inside each other's territory. — Greg Myre, NPR, 5 Oct. 2026 Although inflicting pain globally, the energy crisis is biting particularly hard in the rural expanses and communities of the European Union’s largest country by area. — ABC News, 27 Sep. 2026 Alexander Kuzmenko, 62, was fishing with a group of people along the Bolshoy Yenisey River in Russia's Republic of Tuva when the bear attacked him, inflicting severe injuries to his head and face. — Amber Harding Outkick, FOXNews.com, 24 Sep. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for inflicting
  1. imposing
  2. creating
  3. forcing
  4. bringing
Verb
  • Upon entering, an imposing chandelier is a focal point and above it, the original ceiling has been carefully preserved.
    — Luisa Zargani, Footwear News, 21 Oct. 2026
  • Infused with an injection of classic Osbourne glamour, the creamy stucco and terracotta-roof structure is tucked behind imposing security gates on just over half an acre.
    — Wendy Bowman, Robb Report, 21 Oct. 2026
Definition of imposing
Verb
  • This has the effect of creating more sunlight hours in the evening during months when the weather is the warmest.
    — Hannah Poukish, Sacbee.com, 28 Oct. 2026
  • In our community, parents have been able to make up a portion of the rest, but as the cuts keep piling up, more and more parents are considering leaving the system, creating a cycle of disinvestment.
    — Chicago Tribune, Chicago Tribune, 28 Oct. 2026
Definition of creating
Verb
  • Cooper has led wire-to-wire over Republican opponent Michael Whatley, maintaining wide polling and fundraising leads and forcing key GOP super PACs to pause spending in the race to focus elsewhere.
    — Mabinty Quarshie, The Washington Examiner, 26 Oct. 2026
  • The question is going to voters because opponents gathered petition signatures forcing a referendum.
    — Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 26 Oct. 2026
Definition of forcing
Verb
  • Heidi Rackliffe, Avec’s chief program officer, was bringing her team in on weekends to call everybody back.
    — Rachel Siegel, CNN Money, 24 Oct. 2026
  • By bringing a familiar nameplate into the electric era, VW has a chance to make the transition feel less like a leap into the unknown and more like buying the next version of a car people already understand.
    — New Atlas, New Atlas, 24 Oct. 2026
Definition of bringing

Browse Nearby Words

inflicted
inflicting
inflicts
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Inflicting.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/inflicting. Accessed 29 Oct. 2026.

Copy Citation
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of shindig

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

How to Use 'Who' vs. 'Whom'

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

'Affect' vs. 'Effect'

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World

Why do we 'bury the lede?'

'Za' and 9 Other Words to Help You Win at SCRABBLE
See More

Popular

See More

How to Use 'Who' vs. 'Whom'

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
different halloween monsters in silhouette
A Monstrous Vocab Quiz Words That Go Bump in the Night
See All