as in to worsen
to make more severe
a misconceived plan that only exacerbated the city's traffic problem
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Recent Examples of exacerbate
The death toll was exacerbated by a lack of medical supplies, which have trickled in at a quantity smaller than hoped for due to tensions over the ceasefire.
—
Brady Knox, The Washington Examiner, 29 Oct. 2025
That could exacerbate evictions, which, Klocek said, are already rampant in Tarrant County, where roughly four out of every 10 renters face eviction, according to the most recent Center for Transforming Lives figures.
—Matthew Adams, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 29 Oct. 2025
Rising sea levels that have resulted from global warming and the melting of ice caps have likely exacerbated the natural sea erosion that occurs daily from the impacts of wind, waves and tides.
—Julia Jacobo, ABC News, 29 Oct. 2025
Hurricane Melissa was exacerbated by warmer-than-usual waters off Jamaica’s southern coast.
—Denise Chow, NBC news, 29 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for exacerbate
Brady Knox, The Washington Examiner, 29 Oct. 2025
That could exacerbate evictions, which, Klocek said, are already rampant in Tarrant County, where roughly four out of every 10 renters face eviction, according to the most recent Center for Transforming Lives figures.
—Matthew Adams, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 29 Oct. 2025
Rising sea levels that have resulted from global warming and the melting of ice caps have likely exacerbated the natural sea erosion that occurs daily from the impacts of wind, waves and tides.
—Julia Jacobo, ABC News, 29 Oct. 2025
Hurricane Melissa was exacerbated by warmer-than-usual waters off Jamaica’s southern coast.
—Denise Chow, NBC news, 29 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for exacerbate
Recent Examples of Synonyms for exacerbate
Verb
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The government shutdown threatens that economic output, and according to Schroeder, almost all service members are at serious threat of missing a paycheck if the shutdown extends into mid-November, worsening the situation.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
31 Oct. 2025
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But his blunt dismissal of APEC risks worsening America’s reputation at a forum that represents nearly 40% of the world’s population and more than half of global goods trade.—
Eva Roytburg,
Fortune,
31 Oct. 2025
Verb
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Japan, one of the world’s most homogeneous nations, faces deepening labor shortages as its birth rate plummets and its population ages.—
Micah McCartney,
MSNBC Newsweek,
25 Oct. 2025
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Using fractional diffusion theory, the research deepens understanding of transient charging behaviors in complex materials, which is key to designing high-performance components used for advanced engineering electrochemical systems in general.—
Prabhat Ranjan Mishra,
Interesting Engineering,
24 Oct. 2025
Verb
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Petrol price increases and the naira currency’s unstable exchange rate to the dollar had driven inflation beyond 30% last year, aggravating a cost of living crisis.—
Alexander Onukwue,
semafor.com,
30 Oct. 2025
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There are signs that the Russian military is repeatedly hitting the same areas to aggravate the population’s suffering.—
Tim Lister,
CNN Money,
21 Oct. 2025
Verb
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Melissa rapidly intensified, jumping from a 70 mph tropical storm on Saturday morning to a 140 mph Category 4 hurricane Sunday morning.—
Mitchell McCluskey,
CNN Money,
30 Oct. 2025
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The 2023 edition opened a month later as Israel intensified its bombing campaign on Gaza, which has since killed more than 67,000 people, injured another 170,000 and razed the Palestinian territory to the ground, prompting accusations of genocide, which Israel has strongly rejected.—
Melanie Goodfellow,
Deadline,
30 Oct. 2025
Verb
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Here's how DaCosta's film updates and complicates its already complex, legendary central figure.—
Rory Doherty,
Time,
29 Oct. 2025
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Multiple agencies, few agency markings on cars Involvement of other federal agencies in immigration activities further complicates the situation, said Reeves, the former ICE employee.—
Ximena Bustillo,
NPR,
29 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Exacerbate.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/exacerbate. Accessed 6 Nov. 2025.
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