Meaning

noun a substance used as a warm moist medicinal compress or poultice

noun application of warm wet coverings to a part of the body to relieve pain and inflammation

noun deliberate and intentional triggering (of trouble or discord)

originFrom Middle English fōmentāciǒun (“act of fomenting; lotion or poultice applied to a diseased part of the body”), from Late Latin fōmentātiō, fōmentātiōnem, from fōmentāre (from fōmentum (“lotion; compress, poultice; warm application; fomentation”), from foveō (“to warm, keep warm; to cherish, nurture; to bathe, foment”), ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *dʰegʷʰ- (“to burn; warm, hot”)) +…

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 3.0