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to stir to action or strong response; excite:
to arouse a crowd; to arouse suspicion.
to stimulate sexually.
to awaken; wake up:
The footsteps aroused the dog.
to awake or become aroused:
At dawn the farmers began to arouse.
Contemporary Examples

Perhaps so much so that he aroused whatever cruelty and anger and lunacy that Hernandez may have had pent up.
Etan Patz: Painfully Obvious Evidence Michael Daly May 25, 2012

Murder Boner” is a great one: “The thought of extinguishing a human life really makes me aroused.
Inside the Mind of ‘The League’s Rafi: Jason Mantzoukas and Seth Rogen on TV’s Craziest Dude Marlow Stern September 24, 2014

No modern writer I can think of, except Camus, has aroused love.
Still Cool Camus Allen Barra January 1, 2010

There is also a very significant population of men who are only aroused by overweight women.
Newsweek Live Chat: What the Internet Can Teach Us About Sex The Daily Beast April 24, 2011

The U.S. reproductive rights debate also aroused indignation among audience members and panelists alike.
Women in the World Summit: Fearless Women Taking On the World Katie Baker March 11, 2012

Historical Examples

I was aroused by a discharge of cannon, and found the camp in commotion.
Blackwood’s Edinburgh Magazine, Volume 58, Number 360, October 1845 Various

But various interests were antagonized, and opposition was aroused.
The Grand Old Man Richard B. Cook

aroused from his nap by the shot, he had leaped to the window and seen the man fall.
The Calico Cat Charles Miner Thompson

The declaration, simple as it was, aroused the official to new indignation.
Within the Law Marvin Dana

She was a shrewd child and a generous one when her sympathies were aroused.
Chicken Little Jane Lily Munsell Ritchie

verb
(transitive) to evoke or elicit (a reaction, emotion, or response); stimulate
to awaken from sleep
v.

1590s, “awaken” (transitive), from a- (1) “on” + rouse. Related: Aroused; arousing.