stimulating

[ stim-yuh-ley-ting ]

adjective

1. causing interest, inspiration, or incitement to action:

   We offer a stimulating work environment with lots of opportunity for growth.

2. inciting; acting as a cause:

   Rapid technological change is described by some authors as a stimulating factor in the decline of traditional ways of growing food.

3. having the property of exciting a nerve, gland, etc., to its functional activity:

   This plant tincture has a stimulating effect on the liver, spleen, and digestive system.

Other Words From

• stim·u·lat·ing·ly adverb
• non·stim·u·lat·ing adjective
• self-stim·u·lat·ing adjective
• sem·i·stim·u·lat·ing adjective
• un·stim·u·lat·ing adjective
• un·stim·u·lat·ing·ly adverb

Word History and Origins

Origin of stimulating¹

First recorded in 1640–50; stimulate ( def ) + -ing ²( def )

Example Sentences

The Fed eventually wants to get to a point where interest rates are neither stimulating nor restricting the economy, as they are now.

From Los Angeles Times

“She will take a piece of text and really chew it and argue it. It’s very stimulating. And it’s lovely to have that kind of working relationship where you just understand what’s needed and how you’re going to find things.”

From Los Angeles Times

It kills trees that have a role to play in stimulating rainclouds to form, which disrupts delicately balanced rainfall cycles - creating a feedback loop leading to further drought.

From BBC

Reagan had come into office promising to cut taxes, and he argued that this would actually increase federal revenue by stimulating economic growth and creating a bigger pie from which the government could take its slice.

From Slate

"It was a completely unique, out-of-the-box script, you could tell it was visually stimulating," Moore tells BBC News, "and at the same time, we had no idea how it would end up, which made it even more risky and juicy."

From BBC

Related Words

• appealing
• challenging
• exhilarating
• hectic
• inspiring
• interesting
• invigorating
• lively
• provocative
• thought-provoking
• thrilling