to provoke
87
3.6
- verb
- /prəˈvoʊk/
- Duchamp disliked the group as he disliked all groups and decided to provoke them, to test them even.
- provoke anger
- provoke strong reactions
- provoke a backlash
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Watch on YouTubeWhy does that word, you know, tend to provoke people one way or the other?
- Why does that word, you know, tend to provoke people one way or the other?
- But he did like to provoke a lot.
- And, and I mean, that's seems to be what we do is we provoke, you know, and then capitalize.
- They said that they heard that they were going to try to provoke me.
- I never went out there looking for trouble or trying to provoke people.
- So he started the argument by provoking me.
- Because in fact, some people they do shows who it's like, I'm going to try to provoke the audience.
- OK, What I've had it with, I've had it with drivers that intentionally provoke road rage on purpose.
- Some historians say the Chaffins raid was a case of terrible timing, while others argue that it was calculated to provoke the miners.
- But my regular audience knows that I often provoke them, but if they wait, I bring them back into a compatible point of view.
- There's no like, there's no provoking because they can just do that.
- How can they sort of do less of the things that that provoke that might provoke anger, right?
- The other thing that they do is that they they provoke.
- I UN unnecessarily provoking people feels It's it's it's you say this is beta testing.
Examples
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They cause discussion and they provoke debates.
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Actually, they provoke all kinds of reactions, and we'll see a few more of those.
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I think you say these things to provoke me.
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What this movement has done is question, challenge and provoke behavior change.
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They are trying to provoke you and everyone here.
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Mostly, the police were reluctant to act, in case they provoked something violent that might spread.
Fiction book (1993) -
They would parade around in black areas trying to provoke a riot.
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Sometimes protesters or insurgents seek to provoke violations of law on the part of their opponents.
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Answering their call would be wasteful and would provoke a popular backlash.
Academic text (1999) -
He likes to provoke his friends with silly jokes to see their reactions.
Synonyms
283
2.8
Cause a person to feel hurt, upset and angry because of your words or actions
256
4.0
Annoy someone again and again to make them feel worried or uncomfortable
250
4.8
To start a fight or argument by annoying someone
144
1.0
Make someone slightly angry or bothered by small repeated actions
126
4.8
To make people feel strong emotions like anger or fear
122
5.6
To cause constant trouble and suffering to people and things
103
1.0
To make someone very upset or annoyed
86
5.8
To mock someone again and again to make them angry or upset
60
4.9
To bother someone again and again until they feel angry
58
4.4
To bother someone again and again
57
2.9
Make someone feel annoyed or impatient, often by repeated small actions
46
7.1
To do or say something on purpose to annoy someone
46
3.2
Make someone very annoyed or upset
30
5.0
Make someone very angry
28
7.6
To make someone angry or unfriendly
27
3.7
To make someone very angry
22
6.9
Make someone annoyed, often by small things
21
6.9
To urge someone to act by annoying or teasing them
20
7.9
To surround and cause repeated problems for someone or something
15
4.2
Annoy someone and make them angrier
14
4.8
To make people feel strongly excited or upset
14
5.3
To cause fights or problems between people on purpose
10
6.8
Make someone angry or annoyed on purpose by teasing them
9
8.4
Annoy or disturb someone repeatedly
5
7.6
To bother someone again and again so they feel upset or tired
3
7.9
To make someone angry or upset
3
7.2
Upset people by challenging usual views
2
5.9
Make someone very annoyed by doing the same thing again and again
2
7.9
To annoy someone or make them feel defensive
2
8.2
To offend someone and make them feel annoyed or hurt
1
7.0
To cause trouble between people to get attention
1
7.2
To annoy someone again and again so they feel bothered
1
9.1
To make someone angry
1
9.9
To annoy someone by asking or reminding them again and again
To annoy someone so they become defensive
To annoy or chase someone again and again
Antonyms
How Annoying
Surface Forms
Morphology
provoke = pro + voke
Though segmentable as 'pro-' + 'voke', 'voke' is not a standalone English word and the verb is a Latinate borrowing, so learners cannot reliably derive the meaning from these parts.
Etymology
Provoke comes from Latin parts pro- 'forward' and vocare 'to call'. Think of it as 'calling someone out' to get a reaction, so to provoke someone is to annoy or push them on purpose to make them react.