aggravate
verb
Amy AdamsJessica Rendall
Common Uses of Aggravate, Aggravation, and Aggravating: Usage Guide
Although aggravate has been used to refer to rousing someone to anger since the 17th century, it has been the object of disapproval only since about 1870. It is used in expository prose
William Styron
but seems to be more common in speech and casual writing.
Jackie Gleason, interview, 1986
Mark Twain, letter, 1864
The "make worse" meaning is far more common in published prose than the "rouse to anger" meaning. Such is not the case, however, with aggravation and aggravating. Aggravation is used in the "irritation, provocation" sense somewhat more than in its earlier senses; aggravating has practically no use other than to express annoyance.
Synonyms
Examples of aggravate in a Sentence
Medora Lee, USA TODAY, 11 Apr. 2024
From His March Arrest to Assault Trial As part of that split verdict, a jury found Majors not guilty of misdemeanor assault in the third degree with intent to cause physical injury and misdemeanor aggravated harassment in the second degree.
—Benjamin Vanhoose, Peoplemag, 8 Apr. 2024
Or are those down pillows aggravating your neck strain?
—Hilary Tetenbaum, Detroit Free Press, 8 Apr. 2024
Astudillo Aguirre was charged with aggravated endangering a child and two drug crimes.
—Katie Moore, Kansas City Star, 4 Apr. 2024
That, in turn, can trigger or aggravate other conditions.
—Lola Butcher, Smithsonian Magazine, 29 Mar. 2024
The collapse of the talks aggravated the board and other executives, who had hoped Young would compensate for the sales and business management skills that Mostaque lacked, according to four people in a position to know.
—Kenrick Cai, Forbes, 29 Mar. 2024
Porter played only four minutes before aggravating a previous eye injury, finishing with zero points, three rebounds and one assist with no 3-point attempts.
—Jason Anderson, Sacramento Bee, 27 Mar. 2024
The following 10 foods—and drinks—can aggravate UC symptoms.
—Amanda MacMillan, Health, 24 Mar. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'aggravate.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Articles Related to aggravate
Dictionary Entries Near aggravate
Cite this Entry
“Aggravate.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/aggravate. Accessed 19 Apr. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
aggravate
verb
from Latin aggravare "to make heavier," from ad- "to" and gravare "to burden," from gravis "heavy" — related to grave entry 3, gravity, grieve
Medical Definition
aggravate
transitive verb
Legal Definition
aggravate
transitive verb
Share