aggravate
Americanverb (used with object)
-
to make worse or more severe; intensify, as anything evil, disorderly, or troublesome.
to aggravate a grievance; to aggravate an illness.
- Antonyms:
- alleviate
-
to annoy; irritate; exasperate.
His questions aggravate her.
-
to cause to become irritated or inflamed.
The child's constant scratching aggravated the rash.
verb
-
to make (a disease, situation, problem, etc) worse or more severe
-
informal to annoy; exasperate, esp by deliberate and persistent goading
Usage
The two most common senses of aggravate are “to make worse” and “to annoy or exasperate.” Both senses first appeared in the early 17th century at almost the same time; the corresponding two senses of the noun aggravation also appeared then. Both senses of aggravate and aggravation have been standard since then. The use of aggravate to mean “annoy” is sometimes objected to because it departs from the etymological meaning “to make heavier,” and in formal speech and writing the sense “annoy” is somewhat less frequent than “to make worse.” The noun aggravation meaning “annoyance” occurs in all types of speech and writing.
Related Words
Aggravate, intensify both mean to increase in degree. To aggravate is to make more serious or more grave: to aggravate a danger, an offense, a wound. To intensify is perceptibly to increase intensity, force, energy, vividness, etc.: to intensify heat, color, rage.
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of aggravate
1425–75; late Middle English < Latin aggravātus (past participle of aggravāre ), equivalent to ag- ag- + grav- ( see grave 2) + -ātus -ate 1; cf. aggrieve
Explanation
People who chew with their mouths open often aggravate the people near them, meaning that they exasperate their neighbors. One trick for remembering the meaning of aggravate is to recall that it rhymes with one of its synonyms, irritate. When you irritate, you aggravate. Younger brothers often aggravate their older brothers, because they find it entertaining to get a reaction out of them. Aggravate is also used to mean "make worse." For example, if you have an old knee injury, it's probably best not to climb Mount Everest, because you might aggravate the injury. If your house is in foreclosure, calling your banker an ugly name is likely only to aggravate the situation. Try a little sweet talk instead!
Vocabulary lists containing aggravate
Good Grief!: Grav, Griev
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100 Great Words from "Fahrenheit 451" -- Part I Vocabulary
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Commonly Confused Words, List 1
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Aggravate the paste with a brush and rinse with cool water, then work in detergent, let it sit, then rinse in cool water again.
From Salon • Jun. 11, 2022
Aggravate, ag′grav-āt, v.t. to make worse: to provoke.—adj.
From Chambers's Twentieth Century Dictionary (part 1 of 4: A-D) by Various
Aggravate should not be used for annoy or vex or provoke.
From Word Study and English Grammar A Primer of Information about Words, Their Relations and Their Uses by Hamilton, Frederick W. (Frederick William)
Aggravate, Exasperate To aggravate means to intensify, to make worse; to exasperate means to provoke, to irritate.
From Slips of Speech : a Helpful Book for Everyone Who Aspires to Correct the Everyday Errors of Speaking by Bechtel, John Hendricks
Aggravate in the sense of offend is colloquial.
From English Synonyms and Antonyms With Notes on the Correct Use of Prepositions by Fernald, James Champlin
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
