aggrieve

Synonym Chooser

How does the verb aggrieve differ from other similar words?

Some common synonyms of aggrieve are oppress, persecute, and wrong. While all these words mean "to injure unjustly or outrageously," aggrieve implies suffering caused by an infringement or denial of rights.

a legal aid society representing aggrieved minority groups

When can oppress be used instead of aggrieve?

While in some cases nearly identical to aggrieve, oppress suggests inhumane imposing of burdens one cannot endure or exacting more than one can perform.

a people oppressed by a warmongering tyrant

In what contexts can persecute take the place of aggrieve?

Although the words persecute and aggrieve have much in common, persecute implies a relentless and unremitting subjection to annoyance or suffering.

a child persecuted by constant criticism

Where would wrong be a reasonable alternative to aggrieve?

The words wrong and aggrieve can be used in similar contexts, but wrong implies inflicting injury either unmerited or out of proportion to what one deserves.

a penal system that had wronged him

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of aggrieve British billionaire Sir Jim Ratcliffe, a chemicals magnate and an avid outdoorsman, was aggrieved when Land Rover replaced its rugged and rudimentary old Defender with a design that shares its engineering principles with current passenger cars. Ben Oliver, Robb Report, 11 Mar. 2023 Amazon prohibits class action lawsuits in which aggrieved sellers can aggregate their claims and have their case decided by a judge or a jury. Sandeep Vaheesan, The New Republic, 28 Feb. 2023 He was aggrieved when Hitler, in an attempt to make the National Socialists more palatable to the middle class, opposed the Rural People’s Movement, a popular anti-Weimar tax revolt, which was commendably trying to blow up buildings in Berlin. Thomas Meaney, Harper’s Magazine , 16 Feb. 2023 Foreigners who aggrieve the Chinese Communist Party seriously enough typically get banned from the country. Tiffany Ap, Quartz, 4 Feb. 2022 See All Example Sentences for aggrieve
Recent Examples of Synonyms for aggrieve
Verb
  • Each of these can get perturbed in different ways.
    Bruce Y. Lee, Forbes.com, 11 Sep. 2025
  • Some may still be perturbed by the problem persisting for weeks without explanation and the apparent lack of manual checks for the translation service.
    Scharon Harding, ArsTechnica, 9 Sep. 2025
Verb
  • Those who dismissed intersectionality saw such policies as little more than allowing the disadvantaged to commit crimes without consequences to make up for past inequities, afflicting crime victims from the same disadvantaged communities.
    John Scott Lewinski, The Washington Examiner, 5 Sep. 2025
  • Griffin, who does clinical work in Long Island, New York, said his sister-in-law is in her 40s and quite wary of long COVID, the enduring, debilitating health issues that have afflicted millions of Americans who contracted the coronavirus.
    Jorge L. Ortiz, USA Today, 5 Sep. 2025
Verb
  • As a consequence, the president has given fresh impetus to a story that has disquieted even parts of his base.
    Niall Stanage, The Hill, 9 Sep. 2025
  • In fact, the energy is disquieting and distracting to you.
    Georgia Nicols, Denver Post, 5 Sep. 2025
Verb
  • He’s tormented and has his own personal issues.
    Ryan Gajewski, HollywoodReporter, 8 Sep. 2025
  • In Annabelle’s defense, her laziness is in line with the rest of the film franchise, which almost always involves demons using preexisting hauntings to torment families.
    Louis Peitzman, Vulture, 5 Sep. 2025
Verb
  • In a third discomposing show of baseball in as many days, the Brewers fell, 8-6, to the lowly A's, who looked like anything but in an emphatic weekend-long dismantling of a team that entered in first place.
    Journal Sentinel, Journal Sentinel, 11 June 2023
Verb
  • Many more were maimed, and almost all the carnage was the direct and intended result of Iran’s nascent Axis.
    Graeme Wood, The Atlantic, 2 Sep. 2025
  • Over 45,000 children have been maimed.
    Sarah Ferguson, Forbes.com, 22 Aug. 2025
Verb
  • Until now, the only intervention has been antibiotics, which in turn upset the koala's delicate digestive tract – one fine-tuned to solely eat eucalyptus leaves.
    New Atlas, New Atlas, 9 Sep. 2025
  • This upset many people, like Greg Clem, who has lived on Timberline since 2016.
    Matthew Adams, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 8 Sep. 2025
Verb
  • Consequently, the unit’s members film themselves torturing and executing Palestinians.
    Sean Durns, The Washington Examiner, 12 Sep. 2025
  • The number paid respects to Matthew Shepard, a gay man who was tortured and killed because of his sexuality in 1998.
    Natasha Dye, PEOPLE, 11 Sep. 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Aggrieve.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/aggrieve. Accessed 15 Sep. 2025.

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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