inflater
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in·flate
(ĭn-flāt′)v. in·flat·ed, in·flat·ing, in·flates
v.tr.
1. To fill (something) with air or gas so as to make it swell: inflated the balloon with helium.
2.
a. To fill with pride; aggrandize: positive reviews that inflated the actor's ego.
b. To represent as greater or more important than is in fact the case: inflated the box office receipts to mislead the investors. See Synonyms at exaggerate.
3. To cause (a currency or economy) to undergo inflation.
v.intr.
To become inflated.
[Middle English inflaten, from Latin īnflāre, īnflāt- : in-, in; see in-2 + flāre, to blow; see bhlē- in Indo-European roots.]
in·fla′tor, in·flat′er n.
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
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| Noun | 1. | inflater - an air pump operated by hand to inflate something (as a tire) air pump, vacuum pump - a pump that moves air in or out of something |
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