inflammatory

adjective

in·​flam·​ma·​to·​ry in-ˈfla-mə-ˌtȯr-ē 

1

: tending to excite anger, disorder, or tumult : seditious

2

: tending to inflame or excite the senses

3

: accompanied by or tending to cause inflammation

inflammatorily

in-ˌfla-mə-ˈtȯr-ə-lē 

adverb

Synonyms

• incendiary
• seditious

Examples of inflammatory in a Sentence

She had an acute inflammatory reaction to the drug.

He incited the mob with an inflammatory speech.

Recent Examples on the Web

The precise etiology of this dramatic reduction of blood inflammatory measures is yet to be determined. —Bill Frist, Forbes, 30 Sep. 2024

The billionaire responded to reports that he would not be invited to the U.K.’s investment summit with false claims about the release of prisoners in the country, following a trend of erroneous and inflammatory comments directed at the U.K. in recent months. —Chloe Berger, Fortune Europe, 26 Sep. 2024

As a protease enzyme, bromelain affects the inflammatory process and may be helpful for asthma, cancer, IBD, and other inflammatory conditions.3 Other phytonutrients, called polyphenols, found in pineapple also influence the inflammatory process. —Brittany Lubeck, Ms, Rdn, Verywell Health, 26 Sep. 2024

The episode recalled for Hill an incident early in Trump’s Presidency, in November of 2017, when Trump tweeted out several inflammatory videos from a British far-right group purporting to show attacks carried out by Muslim immigrants. —Susan B. Glasser, The New Yorker, 26 Sep. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

circa 1711, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing inflammatory

• anti-inflammatory
• inflammatory bowel disease
• multisystem inflammatory syndrome
• multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children
• pediatric multisystem inflammatory syndrome
• pelvic inflammatory disease
• pro-inflammatory

Kids Definition

inflammatory

adjective

in·​flam·​ma·​to·​ry in-ˈflam-ə-ˌtōr-ē 

-ˌtȯr-

1

: stirring up anger, disorder, or rebellion

inflammatory speeches

2

: causing or accompanied by inflammation

inflammatory diseases

Medical Definition

inflammatory

adjective

in·​flam·​ma·​to·​ry in-ˈflam-ə-ˌtōr-ē, -ˌtȯr- 

: accompanied by or tending to cause inflammation

inflammatory diseases

Legal Definition

inflammatory

noun

in·​flam·​ma·​to·​ry

in-ˈfla-mə-ˌtōr-ē

: tending to cause anger, animosity, or indignation

the use of an alias by a defendant is…almost always inflammatory

—F. D. Doucette

Note: Evidence, and especially photographic evidence, may be deemed inadmissible if its inflammatory nature seriously outweighs its probative value or relevance. The mere fact that evidence is graphic or gruesome, however, is not enough to render it inadmissible.