inflation
- 1A rise in prices that happens when there is more money around, so each dollar buys less.
Like a game where everyone suddenly gets more play money, so all the prices in the game go up.
Inflation made groceries more expensive than they were last year.
When inflation rises, families can buy less with the same wages.
Oppositedeflation
Note
- 2The act of making something bigger by filling it with air or gas.
Like blowing up a balloon until it grows large and round.
The inflation of the air mattress took only a few minutes with the pump.
Proper inflation of the tires makes the bike easier to ride.
Similarexpansion, swelling, distension
Oppositedeflation
Note
- 3An unfair or unhealthy rise in something, such as school grades getting higher than they should be.
Like a teacher giving everyone gold stars until a gold star means nothing.
Grade inflation means an A no longer shows truly excellent work.
Teachers worried about the inflation of grades across the whole school.
Similarescalation
Oppositedeflation
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- 4A very fast growth of the whole universe that scientists think happened just after the Big Bang.
Like a tiny dot suddenly blowing up into a huge balloon in less than a blink.
During inflation, the universe grew unimaginably fast in a tiny moment.
Many scientists believe inflation smoothed out the early universe.
Note
Practice
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Origin
It comes from Latin words meaning "to blow into" or "blow up," from "in" (into) and "flo" (blow). It reached English through Old French.