Stimulate

How to spell stimulate

9 letters · 3 syllables

How to pronounce stimulate

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does stimulate mean?

1. verbTo encourage greater activity, growth, interest, or development in something.
2. verbTo rouse a nerve, organ, or part of the body into physical activity or response.

Stimulate in a sentence

• The tax cuts were designed to stimulate the local economy.

• A mild electric current is used to stimulate the muscle.

• Good teachers know how to stimulate curiosity in their students.

• Caffeine can stimulate the nervous system within minutes.

Where does stimulate come from?

Language of origin: Latin

The word comes from the Latin verb stimulare, meaning 'to goad' or 'to prick on', which was built directly on the noun stimulus, a pointed stick that herders used to drive cattle forward. From that very physical sense of jabbing an animal into movement, the Latin developed a figurative meaning of urging or spurring a person into action. English adopted the word in the early 1500s, keeping both the literal idea of physically rousing something and the broader idea of encouraging activity, growth, or interest. The same stimulus root survives unchanged in modern English as the noun stimulus, which is a handy memory aid, since 'stimulate' simply carries that root plus the common verb ending -ate. The spelling trap is the unstressed middle vowel and the silent flow into -ulate, which tempts writers toward 'stimylate' or 'stimulaite'.

How the word is built

• stimul- (from Latin stimulus: a goad or spur)
• -ate (verb suffix)