provoke
To deliberately make someone angry or cause a reaction.
provoke in a sentence
- Poking the sleeping bear with a stick was sure to provoke it, but Finn did it anyway.
- Ignore your sister's teasing; she only wants to provoke you into shouting first.
Try an 11+ style question
Verbal reasoning papers often ask about a word like this.
Which word is closest in meaning to provoke?
- Aannoy
- Bplease
- Ccalm
- Dsoothe
Show the answer
A: annoy. The other three mean the opposite of provoke.
Which word is most nearly opposite in meaning to provoke?
- Acalm
- Btease
- Canger
- Dannoy
Show the answer
A: calm. The other three mean nearly the same as provoke.
Words that mean something similar
annoy, anger, tease
Words that mean the opposite
calm, soothe, please
More words about behaviour & manners
- quell: To calm or put an end to something, such as fear or a fight.
- rash: Acting too quickly without thinking about what might happen.
- rebellious: Refusing to obey rules or people in charge.
- reckless: Doing dangerous things without caring what might happen.
- relent: To give in and become less strict after refusing something.
- resign: To give up a job or position by your own choice.
- rowdy: Noisy and behaving in a rough, wild way.
- sabotage: To damage or spoil something on purpose so it does not work.
More words to explore
Sitting the 11+ in Kent, Medway or Buckinghamshire?
Plain-English guides to each test, from the councils’ own pages: Kent Test · Medway Test · Bucks Secondary Transfer Test