exacerbating

VERB

infuriate; make worse

Synonyms

STRONGEST

aggravate annoy heighten inflame intensify irritate provoke worsen

STRONG

embitter enrage envenom exasperate excite increase madden vex

WEAK

add insult to injury egg on fan the flames feed the fire go from bad to worse heat up hit on push one's button rattle one's cage rub salt in a wound

Antonyms

STRONGEST

aid alleviate appease calm delight help improve make happy please soothe

STRONG

comfort compose pacify placate

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

See Examples For:

exacerbating

Major markets may be taking their signal from U.S. bonds, but credibility gaps in Europe are exacerbating the moves, they added.

From MarketWatch ● Sep. 1, 2026

The abnormally high overnight temperatures have been exacerbating the risk of heat stress and heat-related illness, said Sam Zuber, meteorologist with the National Weather Service in San Diego.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 28, 2026

Software stocks that Situational had bet against, including Adobe, AppLovin and Figma, started to rally, exacerbating losses, people familiar with the situation said.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 17, 2026

"Abdominal obesity reduces circulating vitamin D, and that deficiency impairs the immune system, exacerbating the chronic inflammation caused by excess fat and drastically increasing the risk of mortality," Alexandre explains to Agência FAPESP.

From Science Daily ● Aug. 14, 2026

If he jumped off now, Seabiscuit, obedient to equine instinct to flee pain, would probably tear over the track, exacerbating his injury.

From "Seabiscuit: An American Legend" by Laura Hillenbrand