What is the Latin word for provoke?

The usual Latin words for “provoke” are moveō, commoveō, concitō; also stimulō, pungō, offendō. The right choice depends on the sense; see the distinctions below.

English → Latin

“provoke” in Latin

moveōto move, stir, set in motion; to disturb, shake, remove; to arouse, excite, promote, produce commoveōto move something in violent motion, move; shake, stir, shift, agitate; to remove something from somewhere, carry away, concitōto rush; to rouse up, agitate, move violently, stir up, excite, disturb; to spur, impel, incite stimulōto urge on, goad on, stimulate, rouse up; to torment, vex, trouble, disquiet, disturb pungōto prick; to puncture; to sting offendōto hit, thrust, strike against something; to meet, encounter (someone); to suffer damage, receive an injury

The English word provoke itself goes back to Latin vocō, through prōvocāre.

Riddle & Arnold A Copious and Critical English–Latin Lexicon, 1864

provoke

movere: commovere (general term): concitare (stronger term): stimulare (litterally, to spur, to stimulate): stomachum alicui facere or movere: indignationem alicui movere (to make angry): bilem alicui movere or commovere, or irritare aliquem or alicujus iram (stronger terms): pungere (to sting, to mortify anybody; of things, to cause vexation): offendere (to give offence, of persons and things): aliquem provocare (to challenge anybody; e.g., to fight); also aliquem ad certamen irritare: concitare ad or in aliquid (to provoke anybody to anything; e.g., ad arma; to violence, ad vim afferendam; anybody’s anger, in iram): irritare ad aliquid (to excite to anything; e.g., ad certamen; to anger, ad iram): stimulare ad aliquid (to urge men’s minds, animos; e.g., to commotion, ad perturbandam rempublicam): acuere ad aliquid (litterally, to sharpen; hence to excite; e.g., aliquem ad crudelitatem): provocare ad aliquid (to challenge; e.g., ad pugnam): adhortari ad aliquid or with ut (e.g., ad bellum faciendum, to go to war): tentare ad aliquid (to be always at anybody, to tempt him to do anything; e.g., animos ad res novas, to insurrection): aliquem illicere ad or in aliquid (to entice anybody; e.g., to go to war, ad bellum: to commit adultery, in stuprum): anything provokes me, aliquid mihi stomacho est; aliquid aegre fero (aliquid mihi or meo animo aegre est, comic); aliquid mihi molestum est; aliquid me pungit; aliquid male me habet: that has provoked me more than even Quintus himself, haec mihi majori stomacho, quam ipsi Quinto fuerunt: to be provoked, indignari; stomachari; commoveri dolore; irasci [SYN. above]: to be much provoked, dolore or ira exardescere; dolore or ira incensum esse: he is provoked that, etc., or it provokes him that, asgre ille fert, quod, etc.: to provoke the people stilt more, per se accensos animos incitare: to become provoked, (ira) exacerbatum or iratum esse: to be much provoked, iracundia ardere: to be rather provoked, subirasci alicui: to be dreadfully provoked, saevire.

To provoke hunger, thirst, famem, sitim facere or gignere or afferre. Vid: also, To EXCITE.

Quick answer

What is the Latin word for provoke?: The usual Latin words for “provoke” are moveō, commoveō, concitō; also stimulō, pungō, offendō. The right choice depends on the sense; see the distinctions below.

Entry from J. E. Riddle & T. K. Arnold, A Copious and Critical English–Latin Lexicon (rev. C. Anthon, New York: Harper, 1864), digitised by Fergus J. P. Walsh, CC BY-SA 4.0; Latin markup adapted by latindictionary.co.