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Added 10 October 2026

aggravate

/ˈæɡ.ɹə.veɪ̯t/ verb

In Latin: aggravō First recorded: 1471 Wiktionary

verb Definition from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). Pronunciation from Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org. More about aggravate at Wordnik → Where our words come from →

To make (an offence) worse or more severe; to increase in offensiveness or heinousness. .mw-parser-output .defdate{font-size:smaller}
To make (any bad thing) worse.
To give extra weight or intensity to; to exaggerate, to magnify.
He aggravated the story.

adjective

Aggravated.
Loaded, burdened, weighed down.
Heightened, intensified.

Origin

The adjective is first attested in 1471 in Middle English, the verb in 1530; from Latin aggravātus, perfect passive participle of aggravō (“to add to the weight of, make worse, oppress, annoy”) (see -ate (verb-forming suffix) and -ate (adjective-forming suffix)), from ad- (“to”) + gravō (“to make heavy”), from gravis (“heavy”) + -ō (verb-forming suffix). See grave and compare aggrieve and aggrege. Participial usage of the adjective up until Early Modern English. By surface analysis, ag- + grave (“heavy”) + -ate (“verb suffix”).

From Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org (CC BY-SA)

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