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Definition of aggravate
aggravated
;aggravating
transitive verb
1 : to make worse, more serious, or more severe : to intensify unpleasantly problems have been aggravated by neglect
2a : to rouse to displeasure or anger by usually persistent and often petty goading were aggravated by the noise and trafficb : to produce inflammation in
From the M-W Editors
Common Uses of aggravate, aggravation, and aggravating
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 when his silly conceit … about his not-very-good early work has begun to aggravate us — William Styron but seems to be more common in speech and casual writing. a good profession for him, because bus drivers get aggravated — Jackie Gleason (interview, 1986) & now this letter comes to aggravate me a thousand times worse — 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.
Examples of aggravate in a Sentence
She aggravated an old knee injury.
They're afraid that we might aggravate an already bad situation.
A headache can be aggravated by too much exercise.
The symptoms were aggravated by drinking alcohol.
All of these delays really aggravate me.
Our neighbors were aggravated by all the noise.
Origin and Etymology of aggravate
Latin aggravatus, past participle of aggravare to make heavier, from ad- + gravare to burden, from gravis heavy — more at grieve
AGGRAVATE Defined for English Language Learners
aggravate
playDefinition of aggravate for English Language Learners
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: to make (an injury, problem, etc.) more serious or severe
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: to make (someone) angry : to annoy or bother (someone)
AGGRAVATE Defined for Kids
aggravate
playDefinition of aggravate for Students
aggravated
;aggravating
1 : to make worse or more serious aggravate an injury Don't aggravate an already bad situation.
2 : to make angry usually by bothering again and again All of these delays really aggravate me.
Word Root of aggravate
The Latin word gravis, meaning “heavy” or “serious,” gives us the root grav. Words from the Latin gravis have something to do with heaviness or seriousness. Something grave, or important, such as a situation, requires serious thought and consideration. To aggravate is to make a situation more serious. Gravity is a force that pulls everything towards the ground making it feel heavy.
Medical Dictionary
Law Dictionary
Learn More about aggravate
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See words that rhyme with aggravate Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for aggravate Spanish Central: Translation of aggravate Nglish: Translation of aggravate for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of aggravate for Arabic speakers
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