/ɪn'fleɪt; ɪn`flet/
v
1 (a) [Tn, Tn.pr] ~ sth (with sth) fill (a tyre, balloon, etc) with air or gas 使（轮胎、气球等）充气、膨胀
*a fully inflated tyre 气充得很足的 轮胎.
(b) [I] become filled with air or gas; swell 充满气体; 膨胀; 胀大
*With a supply of compressed air the large balloon inflated in a matter of seconds. 大气球注入压缩空气後, 几秒钟就充足了气.
2 [Tn] (fig 比喻) cause (sb's self-opinion) to become too great 使某人自视甚高; 骄傲; 得意
*flattery that would inflate the most modest person's ego 把最谦虚的人也能吹捧得趾高气扬的恭维.
3 [I, Tn] (finance 财) take action to increase the amount of money in circulation in (an economy) so that prices rise 物价上涨; 使通货膨胀. Cf 参看 deflate, reflate.

v

[Date: 1400-1500; Language: Latin;Origin: , past participle of inflare, from flare 'to blow']
[I and T]
to fill something with air or gas so it becomes larger, or to become filled with air or gas
　It took us half an hour to inflate the dinghy.
　Her life jacket failed to inflate.
[T]
to make something seem more important or impressive than it really is
　The success further inflated his self-confidence.
be grossly/vastly/hugely inflated
　The numbers of people involved have been grossly inflated by the media.
[I and T]technical
to increase in price or make something increase in price
　Hotels often inflate prices at particular times of the year.
　Costs were inflating.