ikˈsīt, ek-, usu -īd.+V transitive verb
( -ed/-ing/-s )
Etymology: Middle English exciten, from Middle French exciter, from Latin excitare to call forth, arouse, excite, from ex- ex- (I) + citare to put in movement, summon, rouse — more at cite
1.
a. : to call to activity in any way : stir up (as a person or a hive of bees) to combined or general activity
b. : to rouse to feeling : kindle to passionate emotion
2. : to energize (as an electromagnet) : produce a magnetic field in
excite a dynamo
3. : to arouse or increase the activity of (a living organism or any of its parts) : stimulate
4. : to raise (an atomic nucleus, an atom, a molecule, an electron, or other particle) to a higher energy level (as by heating, irradiation, or bombardment)
radiation excites and ionizes the atoms of material through which it passes — R.S.Rochlin
Synonyms: see provoke