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Inflammatory: meaning, definitions and examples

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inflammatory

 

[ ɪnˈflæməˌtɔːri ]

Adjective
Context #1 | Adjective

medical

Relating to or causing inflammation, especially in the body.

Synonyms

inflaming, irritating, provocative

Examples of usage

  • The doctor prescribed an anti-inflammatory medication for the swelling in my knee.
  • The inflammatory response to the infection caused redness and pain in the affected area.
Context #2 | Adjective

general

Arousing strong emotions, especially anger or hostility.

Synonyms

incendiary, provocative

Examples of usage

  • His inflammatory remarks during the debate sparked a heated argument.
  • The inflammatory article in the newspaper triggered a wave of protests.

Translations

Translations of the word "inflammatory" in other languages:

🇵🇹 inflamatório

🇮🇳 सूजनकारी

🇩🇪 entzündlich

🇮🇩 inflamasi

🇺🇦 запальний

🇵🇱 zapalny

🇯🇵 炎症性

🇫🇷 inflammatoire

🇪🇸 inflamatorio

🇹🇷 iltihaplı

🇰🇷 염증성

🇸🇦 التهابي

🇨🇿 zánětlivý

🇸🇰 zápalový

🇨🇳 炎症性

🇸🇮 vnetni

🇮🇸 bólguvaldandi

🇰🇿 қабынған

🇬🇪 ანთებითი

🇦🇿 iltihablı

🇲🇽 inflamatorio

Etymology

The word 'inflammatory' originates from the Latin word 'inflammare', which means 'to set on fire'. The term was first used in the medical context to describe processes that cause redness, swelling, and pain. Over time, it also gained a more general meaning of provoking strong emotions, particularly anger or hostility. The use of 'inflammatory' in a figurative sense to describe provocative or incendiary statements dates back to the early 19th century.

See also: inflamed.

Word Frequency Rank

At #6,487 in frequency, this word belongs to advanced vocabulary. It's less common than core vocabulary but important for sophisticated expression.