How to Use provocative in a Sentence

provocative

adjective

• It was one of his more provocative suggestions.
• She was wearing a very provocative outfit.
• Rude wanted to show me the most provocative street art in the city.
  — Tony Perrottet, Travel + Leisure, 11 June 2023
• The hotel's buzz is due to its provocative mix of old and new.
  — Tony Perrottet, Travel + Leisure, 14 Dec. 2024
• Will Vladimir Putin view that as provocative, as more of a threat?
  — CBS News, 3 July 2022
• Cloud was beloved by fans of the provocative teen drama.
  — Lisa Respers France, CNN, 1 Aug. 2023
• And that makes this provocative but uneasy film leave a sour taste in the mouth.
  — David Rooney, The Hollywood Reporter, 2 Sep. 2023
• Warts and all, this is a lovely, deep, provocative book.
  — Jay Nordlinger, National Review, 7 June 2023
• Some of Cracknell’s choices, in fact, make the work less provocative.
  — Zachary Woolfe, New York Times, 1 Jan. 2024
• The artist’s small paintings are as dense and provocative as his large ones — tiny worlds full of ideograms, like tarot cards.
  — Cate McQuaid, BostonGlobe.com, 9 May 2023
• All of the above might have been very provocative in a film focused solely on Lewis’ gospel work.
  — John Defore, The Hollywood Reporter, 22 May 2022
• Her books on Alaska ranged from the practical to the provocative.
  — Chris Bieri, Anchorage Daily News, 28 July 2022
• Cassie’s arc was provocative, but Sweeney found bringing the story to life thrilling.
  — Janelle Okwodu, Vogue, 21 Apr. 2022
• But even the provocative purveyor of $800 T-shirts isn’t immune to the cowboy myth.
  — Naomi Rougeau, Robb Report, 3 Oct. 2023
• This fragrance is easily the most provocative cologne on the list.
  — Grooming Playbook, The Salt Lake Tribune, 26 May 2022
• Maybe there just isn’t a bigger and more provocative story here.
  — Daniel Fienberg, The Hollywood Reporter, 9 June 2022
• The whole point of these provocative campaigns is to show that fashion doesn’t have to be so serious.
  — Kerane Marcellus, Essence, 22 Sep. 2023
• The authors of the provocative study make an unfortunate but true point.
  — Marshall Shepherd, Forbes, 11 Feb. 2024
• In both cases, the hope is to engage and test them, so that something new, and provocative, results.
  — Bill Fischer, Forbes, 20 Apr. 2023
• The provocative comments, experts said, were part of a pattern.
  — Genevieve Glatsky, New York Times, 10 Apr. 2024
• Nudes are one of the oldest and most stubbornly provocative tropes in Western art.
  — Julia Halperin, New York Times, 3 Apr. 2024
• The initial paper wasn’t written to be provocative, Sharkey said.
  — Brooke Jarvis, WIRED, 10 Nov. 2022
• The lyrics were also, notably, a little provocative, too.
  — Ilana Kaplan, Peoplemag, 27 July 2023
• The other of us, Vivek Wadhwa, thought the bet was terrific, fair and provocative, and something that could move the field of A.I. forward.
  — Gary Marcus, Fortune, 3 June 2022
• Even so, its provocative themes and images have challenged friends and allies.
  — Robert Ito, New York Times, 25 Feb. 2024
• The men’s tailoring at the women’s shows was more straightforward, and in turn less provocative.
  — José Criales-Unzueta, Vogue, 12 Oct. 2023
• These are the questions that Musa al-Gharbi raises in his provocative and compelling new book.
  — Christian Schneider, National Review, 24 Oct. 2024
• That makes the rest of the experience more memorable and provocative.
  — WIRED, 26 July 2023
• The albums that followed seemed to be reaching for the provocative edge of Pop 2 while firmly keeping a foot in the mainstream pop world.
  — Hazlitt, 17 July 2024
• The movie’s sharp humor and layered storytelling explore themes of faith and ambition in a way that feels both fresh and provocative.
  — Okla Jones, Essence, 9 Dec. 2024

Last Updated: 11 Jan 2025