aggravating
adjective
ag·gra·vat·ing
ˈa-grə-ˌvā-tiŋ 
1
informal
: arousing displeasure, impatience, or anger
an aggravating habit
2
: increasing the seriousness of (a crime)
aggravating circumstances like recklessness
Usage of Aggravate, Aggravated, Aggravating, and Aggravation
Aggravate can mean both "to make worse or more serious" and "to make angry or irritated especially by bothering again and again," but writers for most of the 20th century were advised against the latter, and this meaning is still not encountered frequently in formal contexts. Likewise, the meanings of aggravated, aggravating, and aggravation that relate to anger or irritation are most at home in informal use.
Examples of aggravating in a Sentence
there's nothing so aggravating as a blaring car alarm that no one is paying any attention to
Recent Examples on the Web
The state of Missouri has a list of statutory aggravating circumstances that must be present before pursuing the death penalty.
—
Pj Green, Kansas City Star, 25 Nov. 2025
Fayette County District Attorney Mike Aubele said prosecutors on Friday morning filed notices of aggravating circumstances against Kourtney Eutsey and Sarah Shipley in the death of Renesmay Eutsey.
—Madeline Bartos, CBS News, 21 Nov. 2025
Meloni’s government has passed anti-stalking legislation tied to previous femicides, and has made domestic violence an aggravating factor in sentencing, meaning those who are convicted in domestic violence cases now face longer prison terms for offenses, including life sentences in some cases.
—Barbie Latza Nadeau, CNN Money, 18 Nov. 2025
Substantial evidence supports the trial court’s true finding on that aggravating factor.
—Nancy Dillon, Rolling Stone, 12 Nov. 2025
See All Example Sentences for aggravating
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Pj Green, Kansas City Star, 25 Nov. 2025
Fayette County District Attorney Mike Aubele said prosecutors on Friday morning filed notices of aggravating circumstances against Kourtney Eutsey and Sarah Shipley in the death of Renesmay Eutsey.
—Madeline Bartos, CBS News, 21 Nov. 2025
Meloni’s government has passed anti-stalking legislation tied to previous femicides, and has made domestic violence an aggravating factor in sentencing, meaning those who are convicted in domestic violence cases now face longer prison terms for offenses, including life sentences in some cases.
—Barbie Latza Nadeau, CNN Money, 18 Nov. 2025
Substantial evidence supports the trial court’s true finding on that aggravating factor.
—Nancy Dillon, Rolling Stone, 12 Nov. 2025
See All Example Sentences for aggravating
Cite this Entry
“Aggravating.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/aggravating. Accessed 8 Dec. 2025.
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