Provoking

• POS: Verb (transitive)
• HYPHEN: pro=vok=ing

CIDE DICTIONARY

Provoking, a. 

 Having the power or quality of exciting resentment; tending to awaken passion or vexation; as, provoking words or treatment.  [1913 Webster]

THESAURUS

Provoking

aggravating, agitating, alluring, annoying, ardent, bothering, bothersome, breathtaking, burning, challenging, charged, cliff-hanging, disquieting, distracting, disturbing, electric, emphatic, encouraging, energizing, enthusiastic, exasperating, exciting, exhilarating, fervent, fiery, galling, galvanic, galvanizing, glowing, harassing, harassment, heady, heart-expanding, heart-stirring, heart-swelling, heart-thrilling, impassioned, importunate, importune, impressive, inflammatory, interesting, intoxicating, inviting, irking, irksome, irritating, jarring, jolting, juicy, lively, maddening, mind-blowing, moving, overcoming, overmastering, overpowering, overwhelming, passionate, perturbing, pesky, pestering, pestiferous, pestilent, pestilential, piquant, plaguesome, plaguey, plaguing, prompting, provocation, provocative, racy, ravishing, readable, rich, rousing, soul-stirring, spicy, spirit-stirring, stimulant, stimulating, stimulative, stirring, striking, succulent, suspenseful, suspensive, tantalizing, teasing, telling, thought-challenging, thought-inspiring, thought-provoking, thrilling, thrilly, tickling, tiresome, titillating, tormenting, troublesome, troubling, unsettling, upsetting, urgent, vehement, vexation, vexatious, vexing, warm, wearisome, worrisome, worrying

ROGET THESAURUS

Provoking

Painfulness

N painfulness, trouble, care, trial, affliction, infliction, blow, stroke, burden, load, curse, bitter pill, bitter draught, waters of bitterness, annoyance, grievance, nuisance, vexation, mortification, sickener, bore, bother, pother, hot water, sea of troubles, hornet's nest, plague, pest, cancer, ulcer, sting, thorn, canker, scorpion, dagger, scourge, carking care, canker worm of care, mishap, misfortune, desagrement, esclandre, rub, source of irritation, source of annoyance, wound, open sore, sore subject, skeleton in the closet, thorn in the flesh, thorn in one's side, where the shoe pinches, gall and wormwood, sorry sight, heavy news, provocation, affront, head and front of one's offending, infestation, molestation, malignity, causing pain, hurting, hurtful, painful, dolorific, dolorous, unpleasant, unpleasing, displeasing, disagreeable, unpalatable, bitter, distasteful, uninviting, unwelcome, undesirable, undesired, obnoxious, unacceptable, unpopular, thankless, unsatisfactory, untoward, unlucky, uncomfortable, distressing, afflicting, afflictive, joyless, cheerless, comfortless, dismal, disheartening, depressing, depressive, dreary, melancholy, grievous, piteous, woeful, rueful, mournful, deplorable, pitiable, lamentable, sad, affecting, touching, pathetic, irritating, provoking, stinging, annoying, aggravating, mortifying, galling, unaccommodating, invidious, vexatious, troublesome, tiresome, irksome, wearisome, plaguing, plaguy, awkward, importunate, teasing, pestering, bothering, harassing, worrying, tormenting, carking, intolerable, insufferable, insupportable, unbearable, unendurable, past bearing, not to be borne, not to be endured, more than flesh and blood can bear, enough to drive one mad, enough to provoke a saint, enough to make a parson swear, enough to gag a maggot, shocking, terrific, grim, appalling, crushing, dreadful, fearful, frightful, thrilling, tremendous, dire, heart-breaking, heart-rending, heart-wounding, heart-corroding, heart-sickening, harrowing, rending, odious, hateful, execrable, repulsive, repellent, abhorrent, horrid, horrible, horrific, horrifying, offensive, nauseous, nauseating, disgusting, sickening, revolting, nasty, loathsome, loathful, fulsome, vile, hideous, sharp, acute, sore, severe, grave, hard, harsh, cruel, biting, caustic, cutting, corroding, consuming, racking, excruciating, searching, grinding, grating, agonizing, envenomed, catheretic, pyrotic, ruinous, disastrous, calamitous, tragical, desolating, withering, burdensome, onerous, oppressive, cumbrous, cumbersome, painfully, with pain, deuced, Int, hinc illae lachrymae!, surgit amari aliquid, the place being too hot to hold one, the iron entering into the soul, he jests at scars that never felt a wound, I must be cruel only to be kind, what deep wounds ever closed without a scar?.

Hate

N hate, hatred, vials of hate, disaffection, disfavor, alienation, estrangement, coolness, enmity, animosity, umbrage, pique, grudge, dudgeon, spleen bitterness, bitterness of feeling, ill blood, bad blood, acrimony, malice, implacability, repugnance, misanthropy, demonophobia, gynephobia, negrophobia, odium, unpopularity, detestation, antipathy, object of hatred, object of execration, abomination, aversion, b=ete noire, enemy, bitter pill, source of annoyance, hating, abhorrent, averse from, set against, bitter, implacable, unloved, unbeloved, unlamented, undeplored, unmourned, uncared for, unendeared, un-valued, disliked, crossed in love, forsaken, rejected, lovelorn, jilted, obnoxious, hateful, odious, abominable, repulsive, offensive, shocking, disgusting, reprehensible, invidious, spiteful, malicious, insulting, irritating, provoking, at daggers drawn, not on speaking terms, at loggerheads, no love lost between.