aggravation
Americannoun
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aggravations
plural
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an increase in intensity, seriousness, or severity; act of making worse.
an aggravation of pain.
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the state of being aggravated.
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something that causes an increase in intensity, degree, or severity.
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annoyance; exasperation.
Johnny causes me so much aggravation!
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a source or cause of annoyance or exasperation.
Johnny's such an aggravation to her!
Usage
See aggravate.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of aggravation
1475–85; < Medieval Latin aggravātiōn- (stem of aggravātiō ); see aggravate, -ion
Explanation
An aggravation is something that makes a situation or condition worse. Getting hot and sweaty might result in an aggravation of your poison ivy rash. An aggravation of symptoms in a hospital patient is a bad sign — things are becoming more serious. Another, less formal way to use the noun aggravation is to mean something that annoys or bothers you. You might say, "Having to take the bus is such an aggravation — I'd much rather drive my car." The Latin root of aggravation is aggravare, "make heavier," or "increase in oppressiveness."
Vocabulary lists containing aggravation
Good Grief!: Grav, Griev
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Life Is So Good
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Old Yeller
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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.
See Examples For:
Failing to consider this humdrum second category can create unnecessary confusion and aggravation.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 16, 2026
And both are attuned to the moments when Evans lets his aggravation slip.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 14, 2026
Goals, aggravation, a red card that infuriated the visitors and opened a door for the hosts, a toe-to-toe fight that went to the wire.
From BBC ● Jan. 25, 2026
“The risk of reinjury or aggravation is higher during the initial phase, when movement is being reintroduced.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 25, 2025
If Barack’s disregard for punctuality had once been something I’d gently teased him about, it was now a straight-up aggravation.
From "Becoming" by Michelle Obama
Monitoring, litigating, and tax administration are king-size aggravations that nobody talks about because at the plan-sponsor level it’s called job security.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 27, 2026
Such are the occasional aggravations and annoyances that bedevil the tony section of Los Angeles that Harris calls home.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 15, 2024
On Saturday Mr Niinisto called Mr Putin to tell him of the Finnish decision and later said the call had been "direct and straight-forward" and "conducted without aggravations".
From BBC ● May 15, 2022
And coaches and medical personnel have explained the aggravations, like masks and testing, that will come with remaining unprotected during the season.
From New York Times ● Sep. 2, 2021
And in fact the afternoon took the form of an ever-growing pile of aggravations.
From "Newjack: Guarding Sing Sing" by Ted Conover
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Get a wordDefinitions 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.
