provoke
gb/pɹəvˈoʊk/ us/pɹəvˈoʊk/
B2
Engleză
~ 8400
Sensuri
0 sensuri
Verb
B2
action
1
Cause strong emotion, often anger
To make someone feel a strong emotion, especially anger or surprise.
Tipar de utilizare:
to provoke [reaction] (in/from [someone])
Greșeală frecventă:
Learners sometimes confuse 'provoke' with 'evoke'. 'Provoke' usually suggests causing a strong, often negative emotion like anger or outrage, while 'evoke' is more neutral and is used for bringing a feeling, image, or memory to mind (e.g., 'The photo evoked memories of my childhood').
Sinonime
anger (More direct and common; focuses only on causing anger, not other emotions.)
|
enrage (Stronger than 'provoke'; suggests making someone extremely angry.)
|
offend (Focuses on hurting feelings or moral sensibilities rather than any strong reaction.)
|
upset (More general; can refer to making someone sad or worried, not just angry.)
Antonime
calm (Means to make someone feel more relaxed, the opposite of causing anger or agitation.)
|
soothe (Suggests gently reducing pain or strong emotions, not bringing them out.)
Colocații
provoke anger
|provoke outrage
|provoke criticism
|provoke a reaction
|provoke controversy
|provoke laughter
Teme
emotions
|society
|conflict
|core_vocabulary
Exemple
- The minister's comments provoked anger across the country.
- Her sudden resignation provoked shock and confusion among her colleagues.
- The joke provoked nervous laughter from the audience.
- The decision to close the school has provoked fierce criticism from parents.
- The video provoked outrage on social media within hours.
Exemple pentru cursanți
- His words provoked anger in many people.
- The news provoked a strong reaction from the public.
- The film provoked laughter from the children.
- The post provoked a lot of comments online.
- The new rule provoked complaints from the workers.
Verb
B2
action
2
Cause an event or situation
To make a certain thing happen, often something bad like a problem or conflict.
Tipar de utilizare:
to provoke [event/situation]
Greșeală frecventă:
Learners sometimes use 'create' instead of 'provoke' for negative events. 'Create' is possible but more neutral; 'provoke' usually implies an active cause of trouble or conflict (e.g., 'provoke a crisis', 'provoke a war') and sounds more natural in news and formal writing.
Sinonime
cause (Very general; does not carry the same frequent association with trouble or conflict.)
|
trigger (Often used for sudden or chain-reaction events; can sound slightly more technical or journalistic.)
|
spark (Suggests starting something quickly, like protests or debate, and is a bit more vivid and informal.)
Antonime
prevent (Means to stop something from happening, the opposite of causing it.)
|
defuse (Used especially for tension or conflict; means to reduce or remove danger or hostility.)
Colocații
provoke a crisis
|provoke a war
|provoke a backlash
|provoke an incident
|provoke unrest
|provoke violence
Teme
society
|politics
|conflict
|core_vocabulary
Exemple
- The assassination provoked a major political crisis.
- His remarks provoked a diplomatic incident between the two countries.
- The new tax law has provoked widespread protests in the capital.
- The attack is expected to provoke further violence in the region.
- The article provoked a backlash from environmental groups.
Exemple pentru cursanți
- The decision provoked a crisis in the company.
- The unfair law provoked protests in the streets.
- Their actions provoked a serious conflict.
- The cut in pay provoked a strike.
- The video provoked a big backlash online.
Verb
B2
action
3
Deliberately annoy to cause reaction
To try on purpose to make someone angry or make them do something, often by teasing or bothering them.
Tipar de utilizare:
to provoke [someone] (into [doing something])
Greșeală frecventă:
Learners sometimes use 'provoke' where 'tease' or 'make fun of' is more natural in everyday speech. 'Provoke' is stronger and often suggests trying to start a fight, a serious argument, or violence, especially in phrases like 'provoke someone into doing something' or 'provoke the police'.
Sinonime
goad (Suggests repeatedly pushing or irritating someone to make them act; slightly more formal or literary.)
|
taunt (Focuses on insulting or mocking words used to provoke someone.)
|
incite (Often used in legal or political contexts, especially for encouraging violence or illegal acts.)
|
annoy (Weaker and more general; does not always imply trying to cause a strong reaction.)
Antonime
pacify (Means to calm someone down and reduce anger, the opposite of trying to stir it up.)
|
reassure (Means to comfort someone so they feel less worried or angry.)
Colocații
deliberately provoke
|provoke someone
|provoke the police
|provoke an attack
|provoke retaliation
|provoke someone into doing something
Teme
conflict
|behavior
|daily life
|emotions
|relationships
Exemple
- He's just trying to provoke you; don't respond.
- The protesters said the police were trying to provoke them into violence.
- The children kept shouting to provoke a reaction from their tired teacher.
- She accused him of using the tweet to provoke his critics.
- Don't provoke the dog, or it might bite you.
Exemple pentru cursanți
- He said it only to provoke her.
- The boy tried to provoke the guard by shouting.
- She is always trying to provoke her little brother.
- They tried to provoke the fans into fighting.
- Do not provoke the animal; it is scared.
Verb
C1
action
4
Stimulate thought or discussion
To make people think a lot or talk a lot about something.
Tipar de utilizare:
to provoke [discussion/debate/thought] (about [topic])
Greșeală frecventă:
Learners sometimes think 'provoke' is always negative. In this sense, it can be neutral or even positive when talking about ideas, art, or teaching (e.g., 'provoke debate', 'provoke thought'). It still suggests something strong or active, but not necessarily bad.
Sinonime
stimulate (More neutral and formal; often used for encouraging thought or activity.)
|
spark (Livelier and slightly informal; suggests starting debate or interest quickly.)
|
prompt (Focuses on causing a response such as a question, thought, or action.)
Antonime
stifle (Means to stop or hold back discussion or thought.)
|
discourage (Means to make people less likely to think about or discuss something.)
Colocații
provoke debate
|provoke discussion
|provoke thought
|provoke questions
|provoke reflection
|provoke a response
Teme
communication
|education
|society
Exemple
- The film provoked a lot of debate about privacy and technology.
- Her article has provoked serious discussion within the scientific community.
- The teacher used a provocative question to provoke deeper thought.
- The discovery is likely to provoke fresh questions about how the disease spreads.
- The campaign video was designed to provoke reflection on everyday racism.
Exemple pentru cursanți
- The book provoked a lot of discussion in class.
- His speech provoked many questions from the students.
- The story provoked deep thought about right and wrong.
- The news report provoked debate about the new law.
- The picture provoked a strong response from the group.
Gramatică
Forma de dicționar
provoke
IPA
GB/pɹəvˈoʊk/
US/pɹəvˈoʊk/
Silabe și accent
pro - voke (2 silabe)
Stress on 2nd syllable (voke)
Forme ale cuvântului
Verb
- Base: provoke
- 3rd Person Singular: provokes
- Present Participle: provoking
- Past: provoked
Familie de cuvinte
Forms
provokes
verb
provoking
verb
provoked
verb
Core family
provocation
noun B2
provocative
adjective B2
Related words
provocatively
adverb C1
Negative and opposite forms
unprovoked
adjective
Advanced or less common
provocateur
noun
Expresii
provoke a backlash
1/pɹəvˈoʊk ə bˈæklˌæʃ/
fixed phrase
Cause strong negative pushback
To make many people strongly react against something, often after a change or action.
Exemple
- The new policy has provoked a backlash from teachers' unions.
- The celebrity's comments quickly provoked a backlash online.
provoke a crisis
1/pɹəvˈoʊk ə kɹˈaɪsəs/
fixed phrase
Cause a serious crisis
To make a very serious problem or difficult situation start.
Exemple
- The scandal has provoked a crisis inside the ruling party.
- The sudden currency fall could provoke a financial crisis.
provoke a reaction
1/pɹəvˈoʊk ə ɹiˈækʃən/
fixed phrase
Cause some kind of response
To make people respond in some clear way, for example by speaking, acting, or showing emotion.
Exemple
- The advertisement was designed to provoke a reaction from young viewers.
- His comment clearly provoked a reaction, as the room fell silent.
provoke a response
1/pɹəvˈoʊk ə ɹɪspˈɑns/
fixed phrase
Make someone reply or react
To make a person or group answer, react, or do something.
Exemple
- The letter failed to provoke any response from the company.
- His remark immediately provoked a sharp response from the chairwoman.
provoke a war
1/pɹəvˈoʊk ə wˈɔɹ/
fixed phrase
Cause a war to begin
To make a war start between countries or groups.
Exemple
- The attack on the border nearly provoked a war.
- They warned that such actions could provoke a war in the region.
provoke criticism
1/pɹəvˈoʊk kɹˈɪtɪsˌɪzəm/
fixed phrase
Cause people to criticize
To make people say that they do not like something or think it is wrong.
Exemple
- The government's plan has provoked strong criticism from experts.
- The ad campaign provoked criticism for using sexist images.
provoke debate
1/pɹəvˈoʊk dɪbˈeɪt/
fixed phrase
Cause serious discussion
To make people start talking and arguing about a subject.
Exemple
- The documentary has provoked debate about animal testing.
- The study is likely to provoke debate among scientists.
provoke laughter
1/pɹəvˈoʊk lˈæftɚ/
fixed phrase
Cause people to laugh
To make people laugh.
Exemple
- His silly dance moves provoked loud laughter from the crowd.
- The comedian's first joke failed to provoke much laughter.
provoke outrage
1/pɹəvˈoʊk ˈaʊtɹˌeɪd͡ʒ/
fixed phrase
Cause widespread shock and anger
To make many people extremely angry or shocked.
Exemple
- The court's decision has provoked outrage across the country.
- The leaked video provoked outrage on social media.
provoke someone into doing something
1/pɹəvˈoʊk sˈʌmwˌʌn ˈɪntu dˈuɪŋ sˈʌmθɪŋ/
phrasal verb
Anger or push someone to act
To make someone do something, often something bad or sudden, by making them angry or by challenging them.
Exemple
- The crowd tried to provoke the police into using force.
- She was clearly trying to provoke him into saying something he would regret.
provoke anger
1/pɹəvˈoʊk ˈæŋɡɚ/
fixed phrase
Cause someone to become angry
To make people feel angry.
Exemple
- The decision to cut benefits has provoked anger among local residents.
- Her unfair remarks provoked anger in the whole team.
provoke anger
2/pɹəvˈoʊk ˈæŋɡɚ/
fixed phrase
Cause someone to be angry
To make someone feel upset or mad.
Exemple
- The comments provoked public anger.
- His actions provoked her anger.