as in to provoke
to bring (something volatile or intense) into being
John Adams's wife, Abigail, told him that if women were not remembered by the new American government, they would "foment a Rebellion and will not hold ourselves bound by any Laws in which we have no voice or Representation"
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Recent Examples of foment
One of the great joys of serving in the United States military is that soldiers from many different backgrounds and races learn to come together as a unit to complete the mission at hand, but the Biden Administration seemed hellbent on creating and fomenting racial division.
—
Yaakov Katz, Newsweek, 13 Jan. 2025
In rural Quinter, as elsewhere across the country, the months following COVID-19's arrival ignited a still-simmering battle over the proper role of government in managing public health, fomented distrust between longtime neighbors and weakened community bonds.
—Trevor Hughes, USA TODAY, 1 Jan. 2025
The waiting was the point, to foment in the hot rooms a tangible pressure.
—Doreen St. Félix, The New Yorker, 1 Feb. 2025
The League of Nations proved feckless as the great powers turned to autarky and protectionism in the 1920s and 1930s, fomenting the nationalism that drove the autocratic regimes in Germany, Italy, and Japan to war.
—Michael Brenes, Foreign Affairs, 28 Jan. 2025
See All Example Sentences for foment
Yaakov Katz, Newsweek, 13 Jan. 2025
In rural Quinter, as elsewhere across the country, the months following COVID-19's arrival ignited a still-simmering battle over the proper role of government in managing public health, fomented distrust between longtime neighbors and weakened community bonds.
—Trevor Hughes, USA TODAY, 1 Jan. 2025
The waiting was the point, to foment in the hot rooms a tangible pressure.
—Doreen St. Félix, The New Yorker, 1 Feb. 2025
The League of Nations proved feckless as the great powers turned to autarky and protectionism in the 1920s and 1930s, fomenting the nationalism that drove the autocratic regimes in Germany, Italy, and Japan to war.
—Michael Brenes, Foreign Affairs, 28 Jan. 2025
See All Example Sentences for foment
Cite this Entry
“Foment.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/foment. Accessed 12 Mar. 2025.
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