Other forms: inflicted, inflicting, inflicts
To inflict is to force pain or damage upon somebody. Inflict damage, inflict pain, inflict it on them.
It always takes on: inflict something on somebody. The thing inflicted is always unwelcome — injuries, defeats, suffering, and jokingly one's own company: I won't inflict my holiday photographs on you. In law, inflicting grievous bodily harm is a defined offence. Note affliction, which is the state of suffering, and that inflict and afflict are near neighbours often swapped by mistake.
1verbinflictTo force pain or damage upon somebody.
“The bombs inflicted terrible damage on the old city.”
inflict is a forcing of harm.
Latin infligere is in plus fligere, to strike. Conflict and afflict come from the same striking, so to inflict is to strike something onto somebody.
Latin
īnflīctus
English, today
inflict
Built from
From Latin īnflīctus, from in- + flīctus, past participle of īnflīgō (“to knock or strike against”), from in- + flīgō (whence in-).
Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA