inflame

Etymology

From Middle English inflammen, enflamen, enflaumen, from Old French enflammer (“to inflame”), from Latin inflammō (“to kindle, set on fire”, verb), from in (“in, on”) + flamma (“flame”), equivalent to in- + flame.

verb

1. (transitive) To set on fire; to kindle; to cause to burn, flame, or glow.
   Along the perimeter road the police car approached, headlamps inflaming the afternoon sunlight. 1979, J.G. Ballard, The Unlimited Dream Company, chapter 7
2. (transitive, figurative) To kindle or intensify (a feeling, as passion or appetite); to excite to an excessive or unnatural action or heat.
   to inflame desire
   But, O inflame and fire our hearts. 1690, John Dryden, Creator Spirit! by whose aid
   The long-awaited verdict could inflame tension in the Southeast Asian country and have far-reaching implications in the politically divided kingdom. 2017 August 25, "Arrest threat as Yingluck Shinawatra misses verdict", in aljazeera.com, Al Jazeera
3. (transitive) To provoke (a person) to anger or rage; to exasperate; to irritate; to incense; to enrage.
   Even though no one had known about the plan in advance, the paparazzi were waiting at the door as they left the nightclub. Lalvani told me, “Whether Harry’s Bar called them or she tipped them off, I don’t know.” (I think we do.) He realizes now that she was using him to inflame the true object of her affections, Hasnat Khan. The pictures of Lalvani and Diana that appeared the next day were the whole point. adapted from the book The Palace Papers, published 2022 by Penguin Books April 5 2022, Tina Brown, “How Princess Diana’s Dance With the Media Impacted William and Harry”, in Vanity Fair
4. (transitive) To put in a state of inflammation; to produce morbid heat, congestion, or swelling, of.
   to inflame the eyes by overwork
5. To exaggerate; to enlarge upon.
6. (intransitive) To grow morbidly hot, congested, or painful; to become angry or incensed.