inflate

Language: en

🇺🇸 /ɪˈnfleɪt/

📖 Definitions

  1. verb
    To fill with air or gas; to cause to expand by filling with air or gas.; To increase or expand beyond a normal or desirable level, especially in reference to prices, costs, or values.; To exaggerate or overstate the importance, value, or significance of something.; To cause someone to feel elated or puffed up with pride.; To increase the money supply in an economy, leading to a general rise in prices.

🔗 Details

Word forms

3rd sing.: inflates Past: inflated Past part.: inflated Pres part.: inflating

Collocations

inflate a ballooninflate pricesinflate a tireinflate one's egoinflate the economyinflate a bubble

Derivatives

inflationinflatableinflateddeflatedeflationreinflationinflationaryinflator

Synonyms

expandswellblow uppuff upenlargepump up

Antonyms

deflateshrinkcontractcollapse

Commonly confused

inflame
EN: 'Inflame' means to provoke strong feelings or worsen a situation; 'inflate' means to fill with air or increase beyond normal.
inflect
EN: 'Inflect' is a grammatical term meaning to change a word's form; 'inflate' means to expand or fill with air.

Spelling tips

EN: Do not confuse 'inflate' with 'inflame' (to provoke) or 'inflect' (grammatical term). The root is Latin 'inflare' (to blow into).

💬 Examples

  1. She used a pump to inflate the balloons for the party.

  2. The government's policies inflated the housing market to unsustainable levels.

  3. He tended to inflate his achievements when telling stories about his career.

  4. The praise from his mentor inflated his ego considerably.

  5. The central bank's decision to print more money will inflate the currency.