arouse
B2-C1Neutral to formal; can be formal in literal sense (e.g., arouse from sleep), but also common in psychological, sociological, and journalistic contexts.
Definition
Meaning
To cause someone to feel or think something, often by waking, stirring, or stimulating them.
Specifically to evoke a strong emotional response, especially interest, suspicion, anger, or sexual desire; to bring into being or activity.
Linguistics
Semantic Notes
The word has a spectrum from neutral/physical (awaken) to strong/emotional (provoke). The context strongly determines its specific intensity and connotation.
Dialectal Variation
British vs American Usage
Differences
No significant syntactic or semantic differences. The word is used identically in both varieties.
Connotations
In both varieties, the word often carries strong emotional/sexual connotations, though the literal meaning 'awaken' is also valid but less common.
Frequency
Slightly more frequent in American English according to corpus data, but the difference is marginal.
Vocabulary
Collocations
Grammar
Valency Patterns
arouse + NP (e.g., arouse interest)arouse + NP + in + NP (e.g., arouse curiosity in the students)be aroused by + NP (e.g., He was aroused by the noise.)Vocabulary
Synonyms
Strong
Neutral
Weak
Vocabulary
Antonyms
Phrases
Idioms & Phrases
- “Arouse someone from their slumber”
- “Arouse someone's ire/anger”
Usage
Context Usage
Business
Used to describe generating interest or suspicion (e.g., 'The figures aroused concerns among investors.').
Academic
Common in social sciences and humanities to describe evoking emotions, responses, or debates (e.g., 'The theory aroused considerable controversy.').
Everyday
Often used for strong feelings like curiosity, anger, or sexual interest (e.g., 'His comment aroused her suspicion.').
Technical
In psychology/neuroscience, refers to stimulating a physiological or emotional state (e.g., 'The stimulus aroused the autonomic nervous system.').
Examples
By Part of Speech
verb
British English
- The politician's speech failed to arouse much enthusiasm in the crowd.
- The strange noise aroused the dog from its sleep.
- Her behaviour began to arouse my suspicion.
- The documentary aimed to arouse public awareness of the issue.
American English
- The new policy is sure to arouse strong opposition.
- He didn't want to arouse any suspicion, so he acted normally.
- The book aroused her interest in medieval history.
- The coach's pep talk was designed to arouse the team's fighting spirit.
adverb
British English
- N/A - 'Arousingly' is theoretically possible but extremely rare and not standard.
American English
- N/A - 'Arousingly' is not a standard lexical item.
adjective
British English
- The aroused public demanded action from the council.
- He spoke with aroused passion about the injustice.
American English
- The aroused mob gathered outside the building.
- She felt an aroused sense of curiosity about the old house.
Examples
By CEFR Level
- Loud music can arouse the baby.
- The smell of food aroused the dog.
- The news aroused a lot of interest online.
- His strange question aroused my curiosity.
- Try not to arouse suspicion.
- The film's controversial ending aroused considerable debate among critics.
- The manager's unfair decision aroused resentment among the staff.
- The speaker's powerful words aroused strong emotions in the audience.
- The study's methodological flaws aroused skepticism within the academic community.
- His actions were calculated to arouse nationalist sentiment among the electorate.
- The novel's nuanced portrayal of guilt aroused a profound sense of introspection in me.
Learning
Memory Aids
Mnemonic
Think of a ROUSEing (rousing) speech that A-wakens (A-rouses) strong feelings in the crowd. 'Arouse' starts with 'A' for 'Awaken'.
Conceptual Metaphor
EMOTION IS A SLEEPING ENTITY (that can be awakened); INTEREST IS A FIRE (that can be kindled/aroused).
Watch out
Common Pitfalls
Translation Traps (for Russian speakers)
- Not a direct translation of 'возбуждать' only in a sexual sense; broader meaning.
- Do not confuse with 'arise' (возникать). 'Arouse' is transitive (needs an object), 'arise' is intransitive.
- The neutral meaning 'to wake someone' is less common; the emotional/provocative meaning is primary.
Common Mistakes
- Incorrect: 'The question aroused.' (Missing object) Correct: 'The question aroused debate.'
- Incorrect: 'I aroused at 6 AM.' (Wrong use of transitive verb; should be 'I woke up at 6 AM' or 'I was aroused at 6 AM by the alarm').
- Confusing spelling: 'arouse' vs. 'arose' (past tense of 'arise').
Practice
Quiz
In which sentence is 'arouse' used CORRECTLY?
FAQ
Frequently Asked Questions
No. While it can have a sexual connotation, it is frequently used in a wide range of contexts to mean 'stimulate' or 'evoke' (e.g., arouse interest, arouse suspicion, arouse anger). Context clarifies the meaning.
'Rouse' is more directly about waking someone up or stirring them to action (e.g., rouse from sleep, rouse to action). 'Arouse' is more about evoking a feeling, reaction, or state (often internal). They overlap, but 'arouse' is broader for emotions.
Yes. You can arouse positive things like interest, curiosity, enthusiasm, sympathy, or admiration. Its negativity depends on the noun it collocates with (e.g., arouse fear vs. arouse hope).
It is neutral but can lean towards formal, especially in writing. In everyday spoken English, simpler synonyms like 'wake up', 'make someone feel', or 'get someone interested' might be more common, but 'arouse' is perfectly acceptable.