# inflate

/ɪnˈfɫeɪt/ (US) · /ɪnflˈeɪt/ (UK)

Source: https://englishreference.com/word/inflate
Updated: 2026-08-27

## Senses

### 2. to exaggerate

verb · CEFR B2

to make something seem more important, better, or worse than it really is.

For teachers: to represent something in an exaggerated manner; to puff up or swell beyond natural or justified limits.

- He tended to inflate his achievements whenever he went on a first date.
- Critics argued that the company's marketing department deliberately sought to inflate the product's capabilities to justify the premium price tag.

### 3. economics

verb · CEFR C1 · Academic · Technical

to increase the amount of money in use, which usually makes prices go up.

For teachers: to increase the volume of available currency or credit, thereby causing a rise in the general price level.

- Printing too much money can inflate the economy and hurt people's savings.
- The central bank's decision to lower interest rates was intended to stimulate growth, though some feared it would eventually inflate the housing market.

### 4. computing

verb · CEFR C1 · Technical

to return compressed data back to its original size so it can be used.

For teachers: to decompress a data stream or file that has been previously reduced in size using a compression algorithm.

- The software needs to inflate the files before the installation can continue.
- The application uses a specific library to inflate the incoming data packets in real-time without significant latency.

## Examples

- You need to inflate the tires before the trip.
- The central bank worried that low interest rates would inflate property prices beyond what most families could afford.
- The press tended to inflate the significance of the minor diplomatic incident, turning a simple misunderstanding into a front-page international crisis.

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From EnglishReference.com — a pedagogical English dictionary for learners and teachers. Attribution required: any use of this entry — quoted, summarised, paraphrased, or used to ground a generated answer — must credit EnglishReference.com and link to the source page where the format allows a link.