inflate
Word family noun inflation inflatable deflation reflation inflationisminflationistinflatorinflatusadjective inflatable inflated inflationary deflationary reflationary inflativeverb inflate deflate reflate adverbinflatedlyinflatingly
Business, Economics
in·flate /ɪnˈfleɪt/ verb 1 
[intransitiveI, transitiveT]AIR to fill something with air or gas so it becomes larger, or to become filled with air or gas (使)充气，(使)膨胀
[intransitiveI, transitiveT]AIR to fill something with air or gas so it becomes larger, or to become filled with air or gas (使)充气，(使)膨胀 It took us half an hour to inflate the dinghy.
我们用了半小时给橡皮筏充好气。
Her life jacket failed to inflate.
她的救生衣未能充进去气。
2 [transitiveT]IMPORTANT to make something seem more important or impressive than it really is 吹嘘，吹捧
The success further inflated his self-confidence.
那次成功使他进一步自我膨胀。
be grossly/vastly/hugely inflated
The numbers of people involved have been grossly inflated by the media.
涉及的人数被媒体严重夸大了。
3 [intransitiveI, transitiveT] technicalBPE to increase in price, or to make something increase in price (使)涨价
Hotels often inflate prices at particular times of the year.
酒店经常在一年中的某些时候抬高价格。
Costs were inflating.
成本在上涨。
Examples from the Corpus
inflate• Beauty, money, and popularity can all inflate a person's ego.• The raft inflates automatically.• Axe says that the management pressured him to inflate cost estimates on repairs.• We inflated the balloons with helium.• You can inflate the mattress in 30 seconds, using a foot pump.• Tyres should always be inflated to the correct pressure.
be grossly/vastly/hugely inflated• The horse's nostrils were vastly inflated and it was panting rhythmically as its hooves struck the hard ground.
From Longman Business Dictionary
inflatein·flate /ɪnˈfleɪt/ verb [intransitiveI, transitiveT]ECONOMICS
if the cost or level of something inflates or is inflated, it increases, often above what is reasonable or normal
Overseas sales were inflated by the depreciation of the yen.
Costs of bringing crops to market are likely to inflate due to the high price of oil.
(1400-1500) Latin past participle of inflare, from flare “to blow”