I. ə̇nˈflāshən noun
( -s )
Etymology: Middle English inflacioun, from Latin inflation-, inflatio, from inflatus + -ion-, -io -ion
1. : an act of inflating or a state of being inflated: as
a. : distension
b. : empty pretentiousness : pomposity
inflation either of language or imagination — Cyril Connolly
2. : an increase in the volume of money and credit relative to available goods resulting in a substantial and continuing rise in the general price level — contrasted with deflation
II. noun
: a hypothetical extremely brief period of very rapid expansion of the universe immediately following the big bang that accounts for some of the universe's properties (as distribution of energy and matter)
• inflationary adjective