EN

Synonyms for goad

36 synonyms
8 antonyms
3 meanings

verb
noun

Most common

spur incite instigate provoke embolden hearten

Synonyms by meaning

Verb

1. Spur — to incite or provoke

spur, incite, instigate, provoke, urge, stimulate, impel, push, rouse, sting, induce, motivate, inflame, foment, point, excite, stir up, stir, lash, drive, motive, actuate

2. Embolden — to encourage or stimulate

embolden, hearten, bield dated

Other

Noun

1. Prod

prod, prodding, spurring

Other

instigation, incentive, incitement, stimulant, stimulus, impetus

Antonyms

discourage, deter, dissuade

All antonyms of goad →

Definitions

v. 1
To encourage or stimulate.
v. 2
To incite or provoke.
n. 1
A long, pointed stick used to prod animals.

Related words

Word family: goader goat
Phrases: cattle goad

Forms

Plural: goads → prods, proddings, spurrings, instigations…
Past participle: goaded
e.g. goaded → spurred, incited, instigated, provoked…

Example sentences

urge Try to resist the urge to pick your nose, darling.
spur More money for education will spur economic growth.
incite The speaker tried to incite the people to rebellion.
instigate Feminists instigate women against men.
prick I now have the ability to be a pretentious prick.

Popularity over time

Word	1850 → 2019	Trend
goad		rising
urge		falling
spur		steady
incite		steady
instigate		rising
prick		rising

Use in printed books, per decade from 1850 to 2019.

By length

4 letters: push¹, urge¹, stir¹, spur¹, lash¹, prod¹
5 letters: point¹, drive¹, sting¹, prick¹, rouse¹, impel², bield
6 letters: needle², motive², induce², excite², incite², foment²
7 letters: provoke², impetus³, inflame², actuate³, hearten²
8 letters: stimulus³, motivate³, prodding², spurring², embolden³
9 letters: incentive³, stimulate³, stimulant³, instigate³
10 letters: incitement³
11 letters: instigation⁴

The small number after each word is its number of syllables (impel² = 2 syllables).

In other languages

Français: aiguillonner
Italiano: pungolare
Español: aguijonear