stimulus

noun

stim·​u·​lus ˈstim-yə-ləs 

plural stimuli ˈstim-yə-ˌlī 

-ˌlē

: something that rouses or incites to activity: such as

a

: incentive

b

: stimulant sense 1

c

: an agent (such as an environmental change) that directly influences the activity of a living organism or one of its parts (as by exciting a sensory organ or evoking muscular contraction or glandular secretion)

Synonyms

• boost
• encouragement
• goad
• impetus
• impulse
• incentive
• incitation
• incitement
• instigation
• momentum
• motivation
• provocation
• spur
• stimulant
• yeast

Examples of stimulus in a Sentence

The pay raise was a stimulus for production.

Heat and light are physical stimuli.

The dog responded to the stimulus of the ringing bell.

Recent Examples on the Web

Could depleted stimulus funds stall the economy? Consumer purchases account for about 70% of economic activity. —Russ Wiles, The Arizona Republic, 16 June 2024

Consumers, flush with cash from stimulus packages, competed over the limited number of cars available, driving up prices further. —Alana Semuels, TIME, 13 June 2024

The resiliency of the shadow banking system and consumers in a downturn without paycheck protection and stimulus checks remains to be seen. —Eva Roytburg, Fortune, 9 June 2024

Biden talked about his blue-collar roots in Scranton, Pa. in describing how the stimulus package had helped prevent another Great Depression. —Christopher Keating, Hartford Courant, 29 May 2024

Word History

Etymology

Latin

First Known Use

1684, in the meaning defined above

Kids Definition

stimulus

noun

stim·​u·​lus ˈstim-yə-ləs 

plural stimuli -ˌlī 

-ˌlē

1

: something that rouses or stirs to action : incentive

2

: something (as an environmental change) that acts to partly change bodily activity (as by exciting a sensory organ)

heat, light, and sound are common physical stimuli

Medical Definition

stimulus

noun

stim·​u·​lus ˈstim-yə-ləs 

plural stimuli -ˌlī  -ˌlē 

1

: stimulant sense 1

2

: an agent (as an environmental change) that directly influences the activity of living protoplasm (as by exciting a sensory organ or evoking muscular contraction or glandular secretion)

a visual stimulus