agitate

It might seem strange to look this deeply into the why of Matt Damon as Odysseus, since his casting didn’t agitate right-wing trolls.

From Salon ● Aug. 2, 2026

They are notorious goons, despised virtually everywhere for their ability to agitate, aggrieve and annoy.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 14, 2026

Other practical tips include not screaming, flapping your arms or swatting at wasps, as this will agitate them and make them more aggressive.

From BBC ● Jul. 18, 2025

Some food and beverage workers, many who worked alongside the unionized hospitality workers employed by Hotel Figueroa, started to agitate to also form a union and gain similar rights.

From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 5, 2024

I force him a tight-lipped smile, but his words only serve to agitate me further.

From "Dread Nation" by Justina Ireland

And this is kind of a shame, because the story agitates the brain far more than it does the stomach.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 9, 2025

Conversely, when researchers injected the rats with a substance that agitates the immune system, the inflammatory cytokine levels rapidly shot up.

From Science Daily ● Dec. 5, 2024

Tinseltown, it seems, is in the midst of an AI boom — even as its creative class agitates for limits on how that technology gets deployed.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 2, 2023

That’s why worry agitates us, persistently or even relentlessly, because it exists to engage us in dealing with future uncertainties and working to make things turn out all right.

From Washington Post ● Jan. 6, 2023

“The sight of a wound or scar always agitates and sickens me,” she said.

From "The Awakening" by Kate Chopin

Hundreds of people crammed into the school gym that April evening, and the debate over Point Reyes agitated into a low boil.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 16, 2026

Countertenor Kangmin Justin Kim sang Alessandro with a hooded quality and too much vibrato; he sounded messy, especially in the big register jumps of his agitated Act 2 aria.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 28, 2026

Martínez-Olguín said she inherited the case because she was already overseeing another lawsuit dealing with the merger — not because Paramount had agitated for a change.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 17, 2026

The bison then repeatedly flops on its side in an agitated fashion before hopping to its feet.

From BBC ● Jul. 13, 2026

We thought we were saving time; instead we revved up the treadmill of life to ten times its former speed and made our days more anxious and agitated.

From "Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind" by Yuval Noah Harari

Wilson has been agitating for a board overhaul, and The Wall Street Journal has reported that Elliott was looking to help the retailer find a new leader.

From The Wall Street Journal ● May 1, 2026

Landlocked Ethiopia, home to around 130 million people and one of Africa’s strongest economies, has been agitating for sea access.

From Barron's ● Apr. 7, 2026

The dollar rallied, even though Warsh has been agitating for more rate cuts, which tend to undermine the dollar’s value.

From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 3, 2026

Conversations about his goals implicitly involved an assessment of his prospects, which was agitating.

From Slate ● Jul. 23, 2025

“There is a definite agitating element” in antipoverty agencies in Durham, Galifianakis insinuated, and asked the FBI’s assistance in uncovering the “troublemakers.”

From "The Best of Enemies" by Osha Gray Davidson