provoke

Refn: How to provoke the soul is through stillness and silence.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 23, 2026

England will commit numerous players to this initial build-up phase, including striker Harry Kane, who drops into holding midfield positions to provoke the opposition into leaving their half.

From BBC ● Jun. 24, 2026

But unlike the penalty kick Messi missed in North America 10 years ago in the Copa America, this one didn’t provoke a retirement tantrum.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 22, 2026

But in Bogota, some in the military and foreign diplomats have expressed fears that a return to hardline security policies could provoke reprisal attacks and return the country to a spiral of violence.

From Barron's ● Jun. 21, 2026

This was a big mistake—probably the very response that Ferdinand had been trying to provoke, so that he could represent the Protestants as unruly troublemakers.

From "The Scientists" by John Gribbin

Truly creative and inspiring art undermines that goal, because it provokes responses like empathy and critical thinking in audiences — which gets in the way of authoritarian domination.

From Salon ● Jul. 20, 2026

Ms. Enyedi implicitly provokes such consideration through shots that often put flora in the foreground, with humans reduced to background extras.

From The Wall Street Journal ● May 7, 2026

"I understand the anger and fear this provokes, and I will quickly meet with the Jewish community. It must always feel safe in our country," he added.

From Barron's ● Mar. 14, 2026

It provokes wonder at the density and dynamism of a fantasy city.

From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 16, 2026

I’ll see whether that provokes something—an unnatural response, any kind of reaction.

From "The Girl on the Train" by Paula Hawkins

In a move that provoked anguish among affected families, Bush was granted conditional bail after entering his final guilty pleas in April.

From BBC ● Jul. 27, 2026

That conflict provoked a sharp contraction in the manufacturing economy, with the Institute for Supply Management’s purchasing managers index falling to 49.1 by mid-2019.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 13, 2026

Christophe Sanson, who calls himself the Noise Lawyer, said his firm has more than 100 cases involving air conditioning systems that have provoked legal wars, a sharp increase.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 1, 2026

But it provoked a war that despite the regime's survival has done huge damage to Iran.

From BBC ● Jun. 18, 2026

Chaol just provoked her...though he had his good side, too.

From "Throne of Glass" by Sarah J. Maas

It said such devices contributed to higher atmospheric pollution of nitrogen oxides that are suspected of "provoking the development of respiratory diseases in humans".

From Barron's ● Jul. 27, 2026

For some time, Nicaragua’s leaders have largely avoided provoking Trump.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 26, 2026

Lenin’s party would soon take power, provoking a long and bloody civil war out of which would emerge the Soviet Union.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 25, 2026

A giant new hospital being built in the Brittany city of Nantes for example will have air-conditioning in only half its rooms, provoking the wrath of medical trade unions.

From BBC ● Jun. 24, 2026

She double-parked on busy cross streets as she dashed in and out of buildings, provoking an avalanche of honking ire from other drivers, while the rest of us sat helplessly in the car.

From "Becoming" by Michelle Obama