Meanings
present singular third person provocates · participle present provocating · participle past provocated · past provocated
- now nonstandard and non-native speakers' EnglishTo provoke.
1 more example
The movie called It is Not the Homosexual Who Is Perverse But the Society In Which He Lives was a provocating movie. It dramatized the situation and got hard reactions from the gays and the straights. But when you look at it now it is full of hate. And it was OK, in a way, to provocate, but it was not done with a lovely touch.
1981 December 12, Michael Bronski, Frank Ripploh, “The Meter Is Still Running”, in Gay Community News, volume 9, number 21, page 8 - To call forth.
- To challenge.
Origin
- Latinprōvocō, prōvocātus
- Middle Englishprovocaten
- Englishprovocate
From Middle English provocaten, from Latin prōvocō, prōvocātus. Doublet of provoke.
More words from Middle English, Latin
Full word history & related roots →Cite this entry
provocate. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/provocate
“provocate.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/provocate. Accessed November 2, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “provocate,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/provocate.
Source: provocate on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.