verb

excite

ihk-SYT

verb

To stir up strong feelings in someone, especially enthusiasm or eagerness.

"The trailer excited fans months before the film came out."

"Good news like that excites everyone in the office."

In physics, to push an electron up to a higher energy level, or to energize a magnet so it produces a field.

"A laser can excite electrons in the atoms it strikes."

How to Use Excite

Learner’s notes

In plain EnglishTo get someone worked up (in a good way) or, in science, to bump something up to a higher energy state.

Common pairings

excite interest excite an electron excite the crowd

Word Forms

excited past tense, excite plural, excited plural, excites singular, excite singular, excited singular, excitest singular, excitedst singular, exciteth singular

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The trailer _____ fans months before the film came out.

Etymology

From Old French exciter, from Latin excitare, "to call forth or rouse" — from ex ("out") plus ciere ("to set in motion").

Rhymes for excite

rite bite lite kite cite mite site Vite white write trite smite

See all rhymes for excite →