EN

Synonyms for propel

27 synonyms
4 antonyms
2 meanings

verb

Most common

launch motivate incite hurl push shove

Synonyms by meaning

Verb

1. Motivate

move, motivate, hurl, launch, advance, incite, throw, actuate, set in motion, send, urge, animate, fire, project, prompt, galvanize, galvanise UK, stimulate, spur, goad, heave, fling, toss

2. Either

push, drive, shove, thrust

Other

Antonyms

stop, stay, rest

All antonyms of propel →

Definitions

v. 1
To provide an impetus for motion or physical action; to cause to move in a certain direction; to drive or push forward.
v. 2
To provide an impetus for nonphysical change; to cause to arrive to a certain situation or result.

Related words

Word family: propellant propeller propulsion

Forms

Past participle: propelled
e.g. propelled → moved, motivated, hurled, launched…

Example sentences

launch The rocket landed successfully on the launch pad.
motivate The teachers are trying to motivate their students.
incite The speaker tried to incite the people to rebellion.
hurl I hoped you could hurl some lumens into the gloom.
push He tried with all his might to push the door open.
shove The granny gave me a shove and dashed to the door.

Popularity over time

Word	1850 → 2019	Trend
propel		rising
launch		rising
motivate		rising
incite		steady
hurl		rising
push		rising

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

By length

4 letters: move¹, fire², send¹, push¹, urge¹, toss¹, spur¹, hurl¹, goad¹
5 letters: drive¹, throw¹, shoot¹, shove¹, fling¹, heave¹
6 letters: launch¹, prompt¹, thrust¹, incite²
7 letters: project², advance², animate³, actuate³
8 letters: motivate³
9 letters: stimulate³, galvanize³, galvanise

The small number after each word is its number of syllables (fire² = 2 syllables).

In other languages

Français: propulser
Español: propulsar