Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English homepage

Date: 1500-1600
Language: Latin
Origin: , past participle of infligere, from fligere 'to hit'

inflict

 verb
     
in‧flict
1 [transitive] to make someone suffer something unpleasant
inflict something on/upon somebody
The strikes inflicted serious damage on the economy.
Detectives warned that the men could inflict serious injury.
2

inflict yourself/somebody on somebody

to visit or be with someone when they do not want you - used humorously:
Was it really fair to her friends to inflict her nephew on them?
—infliction noun [uncountable]
the deliberate infliction of pain
Definition from the Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English
Advanced Learner's Dictionary.

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