inflate

Etymology

Definitions

1. 1

   To enlarge an object by pushing air (or a gas) into it

   To enlarge an object by pushing air (or a gas) into it; to raise or expand abnormally

   • You inflate a balloon by blowing air into it.
   • When passion's tumults in the bosom rise, / Inflate the features, and enrage the eyes.
2. 2

   To enlarge by filling with air (or a gas).

   • The balloon will inflate if you blow into it.
3. 3

   To swell

   To swell; to puff up.

   • to inflate somebody with pride or vanity
   • [I]f they find / Some stain or blemish in a name of note, / Not grieving that their greatest are so small, / Inflate themselves with some insane delight, / And judge all nature from her feet of clay, […]
4. ›+ 2 more definitionsshow fewer

   1. 4

      To decompress (data) that was previously deflated.

   2. 5

      To represent something as being more important, better, or worse than it actually is

      To represent something as being more important, better, or worse than it actually is; to exaggerate.

      • Israel routinely claims that the Gaza Ministry of Health, which is run by Hamas, has a tendency to inflate the number of Palestinian casualties in the Gaza Strip.

The neighborhood

• antonymdeflate
• neighborinflation