provoke synonym | Thesaurus.com

Main Entry:	provoke
Part of Speech:	verb
Definition:	make angry
Synonyms:	abet, abrade, affront, aggravate, anger, annoy, bother, bug, chafe, enrage, exasperate, exercise, foment, fret, gall, get on one's nerves, get under one's skin, get, grate, hit where one lives, incense, incite, inflame, infuriate, insult, irk, irritate, madden, make blood boil, make waves, nag, offend, perturb, pique, put out, raise, rile, roil, ruffle, set on, set, try one's patience, upset, vex, whip up, work into lather, work up
Notes:	provoke means to stir up or arouse - or to incite to anger or resentment; evoke means to call forth or call to mind emotions, feelings, and responses
Antonyms:	delight, make happy, please

* = informal/non-formal usage

Main Entry:	provoke
Part of Speech:	verb
Definition:	start, evoke; stimulate
Synonyms:	animate, arouse, awaken, begin, bestir, bring about, bring down, bring on, bring to one's feet, build up, call forth, cause, challenge, draw forth, electrify, elicit, enthuse, excite, fire, fire up, galvanize, generate, give rise to, incite, induce, inflame, innervate, innerve, inspire, instigate, kindle, lead to, make, motivate, move, occasion, pique, precipitate, prime, produce, promote, prompt, quicken, rally, rouse, roust, stir, suscitate, thrill, titillate, titivate, waken, whet
Antonyms:	end, halt, prevent, stop

Main Entry:	abet
Part of Speech:	verb
Definition:	assist, help in wrongdoing
Synonyms:	advocate, back, condone, egg on*, encourage, endorse, goad, incite, instigate, prod, promote, provoke, sanction, spur, support, urge
Antonyms:	counter, deter, discourage, frustrate, hinder, hurt, impede, obstruct, resist

* = informal/non-formal usage

Main Entry:	acerbate
Part of Speech:	verb
Definition:	exasperate
Synonyms:	aggravate, annoy, disturb, perturb, provoke, rattle one's cage

Main Entry:	affront
Part of Speech:	verb
Definition:	insult or involve in entanglement
Synonyms:	abuse, anger, annoy, confront, criticize, displease, encounter, face, give the cold shoulder, meet, offend, outrage, pique, provoke, put down, slander, slight, taunt, vex, dispraise, dump on, give a zinger, hit where one lives
Antonyms:	appease, assuage, compliment, gratify, mollify, placate, please, satisfy, soothe

* = informal/non-formal usage

Main Entry:	anger
Part of Speech:	verb
Definition:	make someone mad; become mad
Synonyms:	acerbate, affront, aggravate, agitate, annoy, antagonize, arouse, bait, blow up, boil over, boil, bristle, burn, burn up, chafe, craze, cross, displease, egg on, embitter, enrage, exacerbate, exasperate, excite, fret, gall, get mad, get on one's nerves, goad, incense, inflame, infuriate, irritate, lose one's temper, madden, make sore, miff, nettle, offend, outrage, pique, provoke, raise hell, rankle, rant, rave, rile, ruffle, seethe, steam up, stew, stir up, tempt, umbrage, vex
Antonyms:	calm, forbear, make happy, quiet, soothe

* = informal/non-formal usage

Main Entry:	annoy
Part of Speech:	verb
Definition:	irritate, upset
Synonyms:	abrade, agitate, badger, bedevil, beleaguer, bore, bother, break, bug, chafe, displease, distress, disturb, egg on, exasperate, gall, get, gnaw, harass, harry, henpeck, irk, madden, miff, nag, needle, nettle, nudge, peeve, perturb, pester, plague, provoke, push button, ride, rile, ruffle, tease, trouble, turn off, vex, worry, T-off, ask for it, be at, be on the back of, burn up, fire up, heat up, hit where one lives, make waves, tick off*, work on
Antonyms:	aid, gratify, please, soothe, make happy

* = informal/non-formal usage

Main Entry:	arouse
Part of Speech:	verb
Definition:	excite, entice
Synonyms:	agitate, alert, animate, awaken, call, challenge, electrify, enliven, foment, foster, goad, incite, inflame, instigate, kindle, move, provoke, rally, rouse, send, spark, spur, stimulate, stir, thrill, turn on, warm, whet, whip up, work up, fire up, heat up, wake up, waken
Antonyms:	bore, calm, lull, quiet

Main Entry:	awaken
Part of Speech:	verb
Definition:	make conscious or alert
Synonyms:	activate, animate, arouse, awake, call, enliven, excite, fan, incite, kindle, provoke, rally, revive, rise and shine, rouse, stimulate, turn out, vivify, wake, pile out, roll out, show a leg, stir up
Antonyms:	deaden, hypnotize, go to sleep

* = informal/non-formal usage

Main Entry:	cause
Part of Speech:	verb
Definition:	bring into being; bring about
Synonyms:	begin, brainstorm, break in, break the ice, breed, bring to pass, come out with, compel, cook up, create, dream up, effect, elicit, engender, evoke, generate, hatch, incite, induce, introduce, kickoff*, kindle, let, make, make up, motivate, muster, occasion, open, originate, precipitate, produce, provoke, revert, secure, work up, be at the bottom of, fire up, get things rolling, give rise to, lead to, result in, sow the seeds, start the ball rolling, think up

* = informal/non-formal usage

Main Entry:	challenge
Part of Speech:	verb
Definition:	dispute, question
Synonyms:	accost, arouse, assert, beard, brave, call for, claim, confront, cross, dare, defy, demand, denounce, exact, face the music, impeach, impose, impugn, inquire, investigate, provoke, query, reclaim, require, stimulate, summon, tax, test, throw down the gauntlet, try, vindicate, ask for, call out, face down, face off, fly in the face of, hang in, insist upon, invite competition, make a point of, make a stand, object to, search out, stand up to, stick it out
Antonyms:	agreement, answer, decision, victory

* = informal/non-formal usage

Main Entry:	defy
Part of Speech:	verb
Definition:	challenge, frustrate
Synonyms:	baffle, beard, brave, confront, contemn, dare, defeat, deride, despise, disregard, elude, face, flout, foil, front, gibe, hang tough, ignore, insult, mock, oppose, provoke, repel, repulse, resist, ridicule, scorn, slight, spurn, stick*, thwart, venture, violate, withstand, fly in face of, hurl defiance at, make my day, outdare, stick fast, take one on
Antonyms:	give in, obey, surrender, yield

* = informal/non-formal usage

Main Entry:	displease
Part of Speech:	verb
Definition:	make unhappy
Synonyms:	aggravate, anger, annoy, antagonize, bother, cap, chagrin, cool, curdle, disappoint, discontent, disgust, disoblige, dissatisfy, enrage, exasperate, fret, frustrate, gall, hurt, incense, irk, irritate, nettle, offend, perplex, pique, play dirty, provoke, put out, repel, revolt, rile, roil, sound, turn off, upset, vex, wing, worry, zing, cut to the quick, disgruntle
Antonyms:	appease, calm, compose, delight, humor, please, satisfy, make happy

* = informal/non-formal usage

Main Entry:	electrify
Part of Speech:	verb
Definition:	thrill, stimulate
Synonyms:	amaze, animate, astonish, astound, charge, commove, disturb, dynamize, energize, enthuse, excite, fire, frenzy, galvanize, invigorate, jar, jolt, magnetize, power, provoke, rouse, send, shock, stagger, startle, stir, strike, stun, take one's breath away, wire*
Antonyms:	bore, dull

* = informal/non-formal usage

Main Entry:	engender
Part of Speech:	verb
Definition:	cause to happen; cause an action
Synonyms:	arouse, beget, breed, bring about, create, develop, excite, foment, generate, hatch, incite, induce, instigate, make, muster, occasion, precipitate, procreate, produce, propagate, provoke, quicken, rouse, spawn, stimulate, stir, work up, bring forth, give birth to, give rise to, lead to
Antonyms:	destroy, finish, halt, kill, stop

Main Entry:	enrage
Part of Speech:	verb
Definition:	make very upset
Synonyms:	aggravate, anger, exasperate, hack, incense, incite, inflame, infuriate, ire, irritate, madden, needle, provoke, rile, umbrage, whip up, T-off, ask for it, get under skin, make blood boil, make see red, steam up*
Antonyms:	appease, calm, compose, pacify, placate, please, soothe

* = informal/non-formal usage

Main Entry:	evoke
Part of Speech:	verb
Definition:	induce, stimulate
Synonyms:	arouse, awaken, call, conjure, educe, elicit, evince, evolve, excite, extort, extract, invoke, milk*, provoke, raise, rally, recall, rouse, summon, call forth, give rise to, stir up, waken
Antonyms:	halt, quell, repress, silence, stifle, stop, suppress

* = informal/non-formal usage

Main Entry:	exacerbate
Part of Speech:	verb
Definition:	infuriate; make worse
Synonyms:	add insult to injury, aggravate, annoy, egg on, embitter, enrage, envenom, exasperate, excite, fan the flames, feed the fire, go from bad to worse, heat up, heighten, hit on*, increase, inflame, intensify, irritate, madden, provoke, push one's button, rattle one's cage, rub salt in a wound, vex, worsen
Antonyms:	aid, calm, comfort, help, soothe

* = informal/non-formal usage

Main Entry:	excite
Part of Speech:	verb
Definition:	inspire; upset
Synonyms:	accelerate, agitate, amaze, anger, animate, annoy, arouse, astound, awaken, bother, chafe, delight, discompose, disturb, electrify, elicit, energize, evoke, fire, fluster, foment, galvanize, goad, incite, induce, inflame, infuriate, instigate, intensify, irritate, jar, jolt, kindle, madden, mock, move, offend, precipitate, provoke, quicken, rouse, start, stimulate, taunt, tease, thrill, titillate, vex, warm, whet, work up, worry, feed the fire, stir up, touch off, wake up, waken
Antonyms:	bore, calm, compose, deaden, lull, moderate, pacify, quiet, repress, tranquilize

Main Entry:	fascinate
Part of Speech:	verb
Definition:	captivate, hold spellbound
Synonyms:	absorb, allure, animate, arouse, attach, attract, beguile, bewitch, charm, compel, delight, draw, enamor, enchant, engage, engross, enrapture, enslave, ensnare, enthrall, entice, entrance, excite, fire, gladden, hypnotize, interest, intrigue, invite, kindle, lure, mesmerize, overpower, overwhelm, pique, please, provoke, ravish, seduce, stimulate, stir, subdue, tantalize, tempt, thrill, titillate, transfix, transport, win, infatuate, intoxicate, rivet, spellbind
Antonyms:	bore, repel, tire, disenchant, disenthrall, disinterest