inflicted; inflicting; inflicts
1
a
: to give by or as if by striking
inflict a painful sting
inflict damage
b
: to cause (something unpleasant) to be endured
… inflict my annual message upon the church itself if it might derive benefit thereby.—
Mark Twain
Mark Twain2
: afflict
Examples of inflict in a Sentence
These insects are capable of inflicting a painful sting.
Recent Examples on the Web
But the fact that Trump is dead wrong will not prevent him from inflicting serious harm right now on American families like my own.
—John Yoo and John Shu, Newsweek, 24 Jan. 2025
The loss of life and innocence, and the horrendous trauma inflicted on everyone who was there, the families and first responders.
—Nicole Acosta, People.com, 23 Jan. 2025
Even in his statement to the judge at his sentencing hearing in 2015, Ulbricht never fully acknowledged the harm inflicted by the Silk Road’s drug sales.
—Andy Greenberg, WIRED, 21 Jan. 2025
The way all of this unfolded has seemingly been orchestrated to inflict as much pain as humanly possible on the club’s fanbase.
—Tony Blengino, Forbes, 21 Jan. 2025
See all Example Sentences for inflict 
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
John Yoo and John Shu, Newsweek, 24 Jan. 2025
The loss of life and innocence, and the horrendous trauma inflicted on everyone who was there, the families and first responders.
—Nicole Acosta, People.com, 23 Jan. 2025
Even in his statement to the judge at his sentencing hearing in 2015, Ulbricht never fully acknowledged the harm inflicted by the Silk Road’s drug sales.
—Andy Greenberg, WIRED, 21 Jan. 2025
The way all of this unfolded has seemingly been orchestrated to inflict as much pain as humanly possible on the club’s fanbase.
—Tony Blengino, Forbes, 21 Jan. 2025
See all Example Sentences for inflict
Dictionary Entries Near inflict
Cite this Entry
“Inflict.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/inflict. Accessed 30 Jan. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
inflict
verb
in·flict
in-ˈflikt 
1
: to give by or as if by striking
inflict a wound
2
: to cause (something damaging or painful) to be endured
inflict punishment
infliction
noun
-ˈflik-shən
Love words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share