titillate

verb

tit·​il·​late ˈti-tə-ˌlāt 

titillated; titillating

transitive verb

1

: to excite pleasurably : arouse by stimulation

2

: tickle sense 1

intransitive verb

: to act as a stimulant to pleasurable excitement

titillation

ˌti-tə-ˈlā-shən 

noun

titillative

ˈti-tə-ˌlā-tiv 

adjective

Synonyms

• charge
• electrify
• excite
• exhilarate
• galvanize
• intoxicate
• pump up
• thrill
• turn on

Examples of titillate in a Sentence

a film made to titillate the audience

writing that titillates and provokes

Recent Examples on the Web

His shows will also include footage from his pole-dancing training that would have helped with a different titillating stunt. —Wesley Stenzel, EW.com, 14 Sep. 2024

Fans of Emily in Paris may enjoy the frothy storylines, titillating romance or the over-the-top fashion, but the City of Light itself steals the spotlight. —Elycia Rubin, The Hollywood Reporter, 10 Sep. 2024

There’s something admittedly very titillating about seeing a Black woman in a place where people say she’s not supposed to be. —Hanna Phifer, refinery29.com, 12 Apr. 2024

Too little and one runs the risk of watering down the horrific nature of the killers' crimes; too much and one veers into titillating sensationalism. —Jennifer Ouellette, Ars Technica, 16 July 2024

Word History

Etymology

Latin titillatus, past participle of titillare

First Known Use

1620, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1

Kids Definition

titillate

verb

tit·​il·​late ˈtit-ᵊl-ˌāt 

titillated; titillating

1

: tickle entry 1 sense 1

2

: to excite pleasurably

titillation

ˌtit-ᵊl-ˈā-shən 

noun