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
Criminal charges dropped As part of McFadden’s plea deal with prosecutors, a felony charge of embezzlement by a clerk or agent against her was dismissed, along with an enhancement that alleged aggravating circumstances.
—
Rosalio Ahumada, Sacbee.com, 19 Feb. 2026
There were significant tactical market peaks in January or February in 2018, 2020, 2022 and 2025, all of them involving momentum reversals and forced rotations as an aggravating factor.
—Michael Santoli, CNBC, 16 Feb. 2026
To secure a death sentence in Utah, prosecutors must demonstrate aggravating circumstances, such as that the crime was especially heinous or atrocious.
—Matthew Brown, Chicago Tribune, 4 Feb. 2026
Of all the novelty prop bets offered for the Super Bowl, the color of the Gatorade bath is by far the most aggravating.
—J.j. Bailey, New York Times, 3 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for aggravating
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Rosalio Ahumada, Sacbee.com, 19 Feb. 2026
There were significant tactical market peaks in January or February in 2018, 2020, 2022 and 2025, all of them involving momentum reversals and forced rotations as an aggravating factor.
—Michael Santoli, CNBC, 16 Feb. 2026
To secure a death sentence in Utah, prosecutors must demonstrate aggravating circumstances, such as that the crime was especially heinous or atrocious.
—Matthew Brown, Chicago Tribune, 4 Feb. 2026
Of all the novelty prop bets offered for the Super Bowl, the color of the Gatorade bath is by far the most aggravating.
—J.j. Bailey, New York Times, 3 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for aggravating
Cite this Entry
“Aggravating.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/aggravating. Accessed 27 Feb. 2026.
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