v. 1
To give extra weight or intensity to; to exaggerate, to magnify.
v. 2
To pile or heap (something heavy or onerous) on or upon someone.
v. 3
To exasperate; to provoke or irritate.
v. 4
To make (an offence) worse or more severe; to increase in offensiveness or heinousness.

Related words

Forms

Past participle: aggravated
e.g. aggravated → exasperated, irritated, provoked, annoyed…

Aggravate or Offend?

Aggravate in the sense of offend is colloquial.

J. C. Fernald, English Synonyms and Antonyms (1914)

irritate What kind of things does Tom do that irritate you?
frustrate Tom secretly attempted to frustrate Mary's plans.
antagonize Layla tried to antagonize Sami a little bit.
exasperate Sorry, I didn't mean to exasperate you with my endless questions.
worsen Ziri's actions will only worsen Rima's situation.
exacerbate Global warming could exacerbate desertification in Algeria.

Use in printed books, per decade from 1850 to 2019.

3 letters: get¹, vex¹, irk¹
4 letters: rile¹, roil¹
5 letters: upset², anger², swell¹, annoy², rouse¹
6 letters: bother², weaken², worsen², impair², enrage², rankle²
7 letters: trouble², enhance², provoke², augment², enlarge², amplify³, magnify³, inflame², bedevil³
8 letters: increase², irritate³, heighten²
9 letters: intensify⁴, frustrate², infuriate⁴
10 letters: accelerate⁴, exaggerate⁴, exacerbate⁴, antagonize⁴, antagonise, exasperate⁴, aggrandize³, aggrandise
11 letters: deteriorate⁵

The small number after each word is its number of syllables (upset² = 2 syllables).