agitate

verb ag·i·tate \ ˈa-jə-ˌtāt \

Definition of agitate

agitated; agitating

transitive verb

1 :to excite and often trouble the mind or feelings of :disturb

My presence did not appear to agitate or irritate him as before, and he accepted my services quietly …
—Charlotte Brontë

2 a :to discuss excitedly and earnestly

b :to stir up public discussion of

… trying to agitate the old question of the embezzlement of the remains of the Confederate Treasury.
—Robert Penn Warren

3 a obsolete :to give motion to

b :to move with an irregular, rapid, or violent action

The storm agitated the sea.

intransitive verb

:to attempt to arouse public feeling

agitated for better schools

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agitation

play \ˌa-jə-ˈtā-shən\ noun

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agitational

play \-shnəl, -shə-nᵊl\ adjective

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Examples of agitate in a Sentence

If I talk about the problem with him it just agitates him even more.
Some members of the union have been agitating for a strike.
A few local residents have been agitating against a military presence.
The mixture is heated and then agitated.

Recent Examples of agitate from the Web

Some hardline Brexiteers are agitating again for Britain to walk away from the negotiations with no deal, before voters have a change of heart.

— The Economist, "Britain faces up to Brexit," 22 July 2017
My wife came home to find the dog agitated and the smoke alarm in pieces on the floor.

— rick bragg, Southern Living, "Elements of Groveling," 11 July 2017
On April 10, activist hedge fund Jana Partners had announced an 8 percent stake and was agitating for an overhaul of the struggling grocery chain, potentially including a sale.

— devin banerjee, The Seattle Times, "Whole Foods drew interest from other potential bidders before reaching deal with Amazon," 7 July 2017
On April 10, activist hedge fund Jana Partners had announced an eight percent stake and was agitating for an overhaul of the struggling grocery chain, potentially including a sale.

— craig giammona and devin banerjee, chicagotribune.com, "As crisis grew, Whole Foods' CEO found lifeline in Amazon," 7 July 2017
But Shaub has continued to agitate over the issue, particularly an undated and unsigned waiver allowing all White House officials to interact with the news media.

— the washington post, OregonLive.com, "Federal ethics chief who clashed with White House to resign," 6 July 2017
Those concessions are likely necessary to win over moderates who currently oppose the bill, some of whom are already agitating to scale back the tax breaks for the rich.

— charles p. pierce, Esquire, "The Solution to Healthcare Will Come From...Ted Cruz?," 29 June 2017
SOCHI, Russia (AP) — FIFA’s new video review system is bringing turmoil to the Confederations Cup, with technology designed to deliver quick, clear decisions agitating players and leaving coaches and fans confused.

— graham dunbar, The Seattle Times, "FIFA’s video review system under scrutiny again in Russia," 25 June 2017
Sochi, Russia (AP) -- FIFA's new video review system is bringing turmoil to the Confederations Cup, with technology designed to deliver quick, clear decisions agitating players and leaving coaches and fans confused.

— Bloomberg.com, "FIFA's Video Review System Under Scrutiny Again in Russia," 25 June 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'agitate.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of agitate

Latin agitatus, past participle of agitare, frequentative of agere to drive — more at agent

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First Known Use: 15th century

See Words from the same year

agitate Synonyms

Synonyms

stir, churn, swirl, wash, whirl

Antonyms

calm, compose, quiet, settle, soothe, tranquilize (also tranquillize)

Related Words

beat, paddle, whip, whisk; reel, shake, wheel

Near Antonyms

allay, alleviate, assuage; appease, conciliate, mollify, pacify, placate, propitiate

Synonym Discussion of agitate

shake, agitate, rock, convulse mean to move up and down or to and fro with some violence. shake often carries a further implication of a particular purpose.

- shake well before using

agitate suggests a violent and prolonged tossing or stirring.

- an ocean agitated by storms

rock suggests a swinging or swaying motion resulting from violent impact or upheaval.

- the whole city was rocked by the explosion

convulse suggests a violent pulling or wrenching as of a body in a paroxysm.

- spectators were convulsed with laughter

discompose, disquiet, disturb, perturb, agitate, upset, fluster mean to destroy capacity for collected thought or decisive action. discompose implies some degree of loss of self-control or self-confidence especially through emotional stress.