Aggravate Definition
ăgrə-vāt
aggravated, aggravates, aggravating
verb
aggravated, aggravates, aggravating
To make worse or more troublesome.
Aggravate political tensions; aggravate a medical condition.
American Heritage
To make worse; make more burdensome, troublesome, etc.
Webster's New World
To annoy or exasperate.
The child's whining aggravated me.
American Heritage
To exasperate; annoy; vex.
Webster's New World
To make worse, or more severe; to render less tolerable or less excusable; to make more offensive; to enhance; to intensify.
To aggravate my woes. —Alexander Pope.
To aggravate the horrors of the scene. —William H. Prescott.
The defense made by the prisoner's counsel did rather aggravate than extenuate his crime. —Addison.
Wiktionary
Synonyms:
Origin of Aggravate
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From Latin aggravatus, past participle of aggravare (“to add to the weight of, make worse, oppress, annoy”), from ad (“to”) + gravare (“to make heavy”), from gravis (“heavy”). See grave and compare aggrieve and aggredge.
From Wiktionary
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Latin aggravāre aggravāt- ad- ad- gravāre to burden (from gravis heavy gwerə-1 in Indo-European roots)
From American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition
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