inflict
v.to force someone to experience something very unpleasant or painful. You use this when someone causes suffering or damage to another person or group.
v.to cause something unpleasant, such as pain, suffering, or a penalty, to be endured by someone or something. Transitive; typically implies a forced or unwelcome imposition.
“The storm will inflict heavy damage on the coastal towns.”
“The new tax laws will inflict significant financial hardship on small business owners across the region.”
“Historians argue that the harsh reparations imposed after the war did more to inflict long-term psychological trauma on the population than to ensure lasting peace.”
The verb is transitive and frequently takes the preposition 'on' or 'upon' before the recipient of the action.
Inflict typically pairs with the preposition 'on' or 'upon' rather than 'to'.
“As for economic pressure, Tehran has shown it can inflict economic damage of its own by disrupting traffic transiting Hormuz, Slavin said.”
“Photograph: Danilo Arnone/Reuters “The overnight theft is a wound inflicted on the historical memory and cultural identity of the city of Messina,” she added.”
Common in health and culture writing
Borrowed from Latin īnflīctus, past participle of īnflīgō, from in- + flīgō (“strike”).
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.