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attiser

to fan

verb ah-tee-ZEH Rare

Also means

to stoke

Usage Note

Attiser originally meant to poke or stoke a fire, from Old French tison (firebrand). Figuratively it means to inflame or stir up passions, conflicts, or desires — attiser la haine (to stoke hatred), attiser la curiosité (to spark curiosity). This figurative use is far more common in modern French than the literal fire-stoking sense.

Examples

"Ces rumeurs n'ont fait qu'attiser les tensions."

Natural Translation

These rumours only stoked the tensions.

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