Meaning & use
titillate
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Meanings
verbtransitive
To make someone feel mild, pleasant excitement, especially by appealing to their curiosity or interest.
Grammar: Takes an object: the story titillated the readers; it is not used without an object.
Patterns
- titillate someone
- titillate someone's curiosity
- be titillated by something
The mystery writer knows exactly how to titillate her readers with small hints.
A rumor about a secret meeting titillated the whole office.
He was titillated by the idea of exploring the old, locked room.
verbtransitiveformalliterary
To touch or stimulate a part of the body lightly in a way that produces a pleasant, tingling feeling.
Grammar: Takes an object and is mostly used in written descriptions; it is stronger and more specific than 'tickle'.
Patterns
- titillate something
- titillate the senses
The cool breeze seemed to titillate her skin.
Perfume is designed to titillate the senses rather than to be noticed all at once.
Word forms
| third person singular | titillates |
|---|---|
| past tense | titillated |
| past participle | titillated |
| -ing form | titillating |
Common combinations
- titillate the imagination
- Science fiction can titillate the imagination with ideas about other worlds.
- titillate the senses
- The chef's dishes titillate the senses with unexpected flavors.
- titillate the audience
- The trailer titillated the audience without giving away the ending.
- mildly titillating
- The film is mildly titillating but never truly shocking.
- titillating details
- The newspaper printed titillating details about the couple's private life.
Synonyms and how they differ
- excite
- More general and stronger; use excite for real enthusiasm or strong feeling, and titillate for light, teasing pleasure or curiosity.
- intrigue
- Focuses on curiosity alone and does not suggest physical pleasure, so it fits serious interest better than titillate does.
- tickle
- Means to touch lightly so someone laughs; it is physical and playful, while titillate often refers to feelings or curiosity.
- arouse
- Stronger and often sexual or emotional; titillate is milder and more often about curiosity.
Opposites
Word family
- titillation noun
- The pleasant excitement or curiosity that something produces.
- titillating adjective
- Describing something that gives mild, teasing excitement or interest.
Commonly confused: titillate or tickle? titillate or titivate?
titillate vs tickle
Tickle means to touch someone lightly so they laugh or twitch; titillate is about exciting interest or giving mild pleasure, and it is far more formal.
titillate vs titivate
Titivate means to make yourself or something look neater or more attractive; it sounds similar but has nothing to do with excitement.
Practice
Which sentence uses titillate correctly?
Choose one answer.
Titillate takes a direct object and means to stir someone's interest, so 'titillated the students with a surprising question' fits. The other options use patterns that titillate does not take: it is not followed by 'to' + infinitive, by an adjective, or by two objects.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “titillate”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.