Emily Dickinson Lexicon

STIM'U-LATE, v.t. [L. stimulo, to prick, to goad, to excite; stimulus, a goad.]

1. Literally, to prick or goad. Hence,
2. To excite, rouse or animate to action or more vigorous exertion by some pungent motive or by persuasion; as, to stimulate one by the hope of reward, or by the prospect of glory.
3. In medicine, to produce a quickly diffused and transient increase of vital energy, and strength of action in the heart and arteries.