aggravating
/'ægrəveitɳ/
Học thuậtThân thiện
Definition
- Adjective:
- Making a situation, condition, or feeling worse: Causing something to become more severe, serious, or intense.
- (Informal) Annoying or irritating: Causing mild anger or frustration.
Examples of Usage
- Adjective (Making worse):
- His constant interruptions were an aggravating factor in the delay of the project.
- The lack of rain is aggravating the drought conditions.
- Adjective (Annoying):
- The aggravating noise from the construction site made it hard to concentrate.
- She found his habit of humming to be incredibly aggravating.
Advanced Usage
- Legal/Formal Context: Often used to describe a factor that worsens an offense or a condition.
- The defendant's prior record was considered an aggravating circumstance by the judge.
- Medical Context: Used to describe something that intensifies symptoms.
- Stress can be an aggravating element for many skin conditions.
Variants and Related Words
- Aggravate (verb): To make a problem, injury, or offense worse or more serious.
- Scratching will only aggravate the rash.
- Aggravation (noun): The state of being aggravated; a thing that aggravates.
- The constant aggravation of traffic was a daily frustration.
Synonyms
- Exacerbating: Making a problem, bad situation, or negative feeling worse.
- Irritating: Causing annoyance, impatience, or mild anger.
- Provoking: Stimulating or inciting, especially to anger.
Related Phrases
- Aggravating circumstance: (Legal) A factor that increases the seriousness or culpability of a crime.
- The use of a weapon was an aggravating circumstance in the assault case.
- Aggravating factor: An element that makes a situation more severe.
- Poor communication was an aggravating factor in the team's failure.
Notes on Usage
- The primary, formal meaning of "aggravating" is "making worse." The informal meaning of "annoying" is very common in everyday speech but is sometimes considered a colloquialism by strict grammarians. Both uses are widely accepted.
Adjective
- making worse