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Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary ag·gra·vate \\ˈa-grə-ˌvāt\\ transitive verb ( -vat·ed ; -vat·ing) ETYMOLOGY Latin aggravatus, past participle of aggravare to make heavier, from ad- + gravare to burden, from gravis heavy — more at grieve
DATE 1530
1. obsolete a. to make heavy : burden b. increase 2. to make worse, more serious, or more severe : intensify unpleasantly problems have been aggravated by neglect3. a. to rouse to displeasure or anger by usually persistent and often petty goading b. to produce inflammation inUsage. Although aggravate has been used in sense 3a since the 17th century, it has been the object of disapproval only since about 1870. It is used in expository prose when his silly conceit…about his not-very-good early work has begun to aggravate us — William Styron but seems to be more common in speech and casual writing a good profession for him, because bus drivers get aggravated — Jackie Gleason (interview, 1986) & now this letter comes to aggravate me a thousand times worse — Mark Twain (letter, 1864) Sense 2 is far more common than sense 3a in published prose. Such is not the case, however, with aggravation and aggravating. Aggravation is used in sense 3 somewhat more than in its earlier senses; aggravating has practically no use other than to express annoyance.
aggravate
aggravate (v.)
1520s, from pp. adj. aggravate (late 15c.), from L. aggravatus, pp. of aggravare "to render troublesome, to make heavy" (see aggravation). Earlier in this sense was aggrave.
"To aggravate has properly only one meaning -- to make (an evil) worse or more serious." [Fowler]
Phrase aggravating circumstances is recorded from 1790.
Oxford Collocations Dictionary for Students of English Oxford Collocations dictionary for students of Englishaggravate
verb ADV. greatly, seriously, severely Their negative reactions have greatly aggravated the situation. | further Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary-牛津双解-OALD7 aggravateag·gra·vate / 5A^rEveit / verb[VN] 1. to make an illness or a bad or unpleasant situation worse 使严重；使恶化 SYN worsen : Pollution can aggravate asthma. 污染会使气喘加重。 Military intervention will only aggravate the conflict even further. 军事介入只会使冲突加剧。 2. ( informal) to annoy sb, especially deliberately (尤指故意地)激怒,惹恼 SYN irritate • ag·gra·vat·ing adj. • ag·gra·va·tion / 7A^rE5veiFn / noun [U, C] : The drug may cause an aggravation of the condition. 这种药可能导致病情恶化。 I don't need all this aggravation at work. 我工作时不需要这一切恼人的事。
Webster's Third New International Dictionary, Unabridged ag·gra·vate\ˈagrə̇ˌvāt, ˈaig-, usu -ād.+V\ transitive verb( -ed/-ing/-s) Etymology: Latin aggravatus, past participle of aggravare to make heavier, from ad- + gravare to burden, from gravis heavy — more at grieve 1. obsolete a. : to make heavy : weigh down : burden < a great grief aggravateth the heart that suffers it — Bartholomew Young > b. : to add weight to : increase , magnify < then, soul, live thou upon thy servant's loss and let that pine to aggravate thy store — Shakespeare >2. archaic : to give an exaggerated representation of : exaggerate < I have not … aggravated your sense or words — Andrew Marvell >3. : to make worse, more serious, or more severe : intensify < such a defense only aggravated the offense — R.W.Southern > < the war … had aggravated the confusions and social disasters of rapid industrial change — J.H.Plumb >4. a. : to arouse the displeasure, impatience, or anger of : provoke , annoy < nothing so aggravates an earnest person as a passive resistance — Herman Melville > b. : to produce inflammation in : irritate < the operation aggravated the ulnar nerve >Synonyms: see intensify , irritate
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