English
provocative
Provocative comes from Late Latin provocativus ‘elicited’, from Latin provocō ‘to call forth, summon’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *wokʷ-.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*wokʷ-1reconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEvocō1‘call’
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEprovocō2as provocare‘to call forth, summon’
- Late Latinc. 200–600 CEprovocativus2‘elicited’
- Middle Frenchc. 1400–1600provocatif2
- Englishearliest quotation 1723provocative2
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor
- 1 Wiktionary, Latin provoco
- 2 Wiktionary, English provocative
- Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1723, Charles Walker: “She used by way of Provocative, to read the…”.
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*wokʷ-Wiktionary, Latin provocoreconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEvocōWiktionary, Latin provoco‘call’
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEprovocōWiktionary, English provocativeas provocare‘to call forth, summon’
- Late Latinc. 200–600 CEprovocativusWiktionary, English provocative‘elicited’
- Middle Frenchc. 1400–1600provocatifWiktionary, English provocative
- Englishearliest quotation 1723provocativeWiktionary, English provocative. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1723, Charles Walker: “She used by way of Provocative, to read the…”
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *wokʷ-
vocabulary, revocation, convocation, 24 more
through Latin vocō ‘call’
invite, invitation, advocate, vie, invoke, vocational, vouch, vocation, irrevocable, revocable, 33 more
Today it means
adj Serving or tending to elicit a strong, often negative sentiment in another person; exasperating.
Sources
Sources: Wiktionary, “provocative”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entry for Latin provoco. By Wiktionary contributors, CC BY-SA 4.0, via kaikki.org (dump of Oct 3 2026); text adapted and restructured. Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word. License.
Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *wokʷ- / provocative