provoqué

Provoqué is the French past participle of the verb provoquer and is commonly used as an adjective to mean “caused,” “provoked,” or “triggered.” It can also form compound tenses of the verb, as in j’ai provoqué, meaning “I provoked” or “I caused,” with the auxiliary avoir.

Etymology and meaning: Provoquer comes from Latin provocare, literally “to call forth.” In French, the term is used to describe events, reactions, or conditions that have been brought about by a preceding cause, or to characterize someone as having incited an action or response.

Inflection and grammar: The participle has four gendered forms: provoqué (masculine singular), provoquée (feminine singular), provoqués (masculine plural), and provoquées (feminine plural). When used as a past participle with the auxiliary avoir, it generally agrees with a preceding direct object, for example: les mesures qu’il a provoquées. As an adjective, it agrees with the noun it modifies, for instance, une situation provoquée or des événements provoqués.

Usage notes: Provoqué is often used in contexts such as debates, incidents, or reactions that were caused by a preceding action or statement. It can appear in phrases like provoqué par, meaning “caused by,” or in constructions describing outcomes that were triggered by something else.

See also: Provoquer (the verb), related terms describing causation and triggering, and phrases expressing cause-and-effect in French.