as in aggravated
to make more severe
a misconceived plan that only exacerbated the city's traffic problem
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Recent Examples of exacerbated
Last year’s wildfires have exacerbated the city’s housing shortages, where median rents are pushing $2,200 for a tiny apartment.
—
The Editorial Board, Oc Register, 11 Feb. 2026
The development comes as the US attempts to cut its long-time communist foe Havana off from receiving oil deliveries from its regional neighbors, a move that has exacerbated a long-standing fuel crisis on the Caribbean island.
—Michael Rios, CNN Money, 10 Feb. 2026
The Affordable Care Act’s elimination of cost-sharing for preventive services, while well-intentioned in removing barriers to beneficial care, exacerbated this dynamic.
—Jared Rhoads, STAT, 10 Feb. 2026
The body doesn't always respond the same way while underwater, and pre-existing medical conditions can become exacerbated during a dive.
—Jessica Mekles, FOXNews.com, 9 Feb. 2026
The Census Bureau estimates that the working-age population (ages 18 to 64) is currently shrinking by 20,000 individuals every month, exacerbated by a sharp slowdown in net immigration.
—Nick Lichtenberg, Fortune, 9 Feb. 2026
As the eastern United States endures a frigid February, advocates for incarcerated people are bracing for the annual influx of complaints about a lack of heating and warm clothing, problems that can be exacerbated by temporary crises like power outages during a storm.
—N'dea Yancey-Bragg, USA Today, 8 Feb. 2026
Invariably, anarchy reigns both on stage and off in the wings, usually exacerbated by the triangular tensions — sometimes romantic, sometimes simply professional — produced between the weekly celebrity guest, Kermit and Miss Piggy.
—Daniel Fienberg, HollywoodReporter, 3 Feb. 2026
Curated by Aily Nash and Tyler Wilson, the latter program zoomed in on the myriad entanglements between the bodily and the virtual that are exacerbated by new technologies.
—Farren Fei Yuan, Artforum, 1 Feb. 2026
The Editorial Board, Oc Register, 11 Feb. 2026
The development comes as the US attempts to cut its long-time communist foe Havana off from receiving oil deliveries from its regional neighbors, a move that has exacerbated a long-standing fuel crisis on the Caribbean island.
—Michael Rios, CNN Money, 10 Feb. 2026
The Affordable Care Act’s elimination of cost-sharing for preventive services, while well-intentioned in removing barriers to beneficial care, exacerbated this dynamic.
—Jared Rhoads, STAT, 10 Feb. 2026
The body doesn't always respond the same way while underwater, and pre-existing medical conditions can become exacerbated during a dive.
—Jessica Mekles, FOXNews.com, 9 Feb. 2026
The Census Bureau estimates that the working-age population (ages 18 to 64) is currently shrinking by 20,000 individuals every month, exacerbated by a sharp slowdown in net immigration.
—Nick Lichtenberg, Fortune, 9 Feb. 2026
As the eastern United States endures a frigid February, advocates for incarcerated people are bracing for the annual influx of complaints about a lack of heating and warm clothing, problems that can be exacerbated by temporary crises like power outages during a storm.
—N'dea Yancey-Bragg, USA Today, 8 Feb. 2026
Invariably, anarchy reigns both on stage and off in the wings, usually exacerbated by the triangular tensions — sometimes romantic, sometimes simply professional — produced between the weekly celebrity guest, Kermit and Miss Piggy.
—Daniel Fienberg, HollywoodReporter, 3 Feb. 2026
Curated by Aily Nash and Tyler Wilson, the latter program zoomed in on the myriad entanglements between the bodily and the virtual that are exacerbated by new technologies.
—Farren Fei Yuan, Artforum, 1 Feb. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for exacerbated
Verb
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The severity of the weather was aggravated by heat in Chicago, where highs were reaching over 90 degrees.—
Sara Tenenbaum,
CBS News,
11 Feb. 2026
-
The consequences of Russian strikes are aggravated in many urban areas by reliance on centralized heating systems, a legacy of the Soviet era.—
Tim Lister,
CNN Money,
8 Feb. 2026
Verb
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As the give-and-take between Goldsworthy and the farmers of Penpont has deepened, the latter have become accustomed to the sight of the artist gathering wood or stones or fallen trees.—
Rebecca Mead,
New Yorker,
9 Feb. 2026
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Guthrie’s disappearance, which police initially said was a missing person case, was odd from the beginning, and the mystery has only deepened with time.—
Hannah Fry,
Los Angeles Times,
9 Feb. 2026
Verb
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The hospital cleared him for incarceration with a Narcan prescription and instructions to return to the emergency room if symptoms worsened, the lawsuit alleged.—
Theresa Clift,
Sacbee.com,
10 Feb. 2026
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Courtesy of Arlit Martinez-Carrada The day after Martinez-Carrada's arrest, her son's condition worsened significantly.—
Mike Hellgren,
CBS News,
10 Feb. 2026
Verb
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That’s somehow intensified by the fact that most of the people mentioned in the files, like Paul Weiss’ now-former chairman Brad Karp, aren’t really accused of anything specific.—
Ben Smith,
semafor.com,
9 Feb. 2026
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After their first child was born 11 years ago, the imbalance intensified.—
Jelena Kecmanovic,
CNN Money,
7 Feb. 2026
Verb
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Lindsey Vonn was the comeback story of this year’s Games, with her journey complicated by injury just over a week before competition.—
Alex Connor,
USA Today,
8 Feb. 2026
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Its demise was complicated, tragic, and has remained mostly untold, until now.—
Rob Picheta,
CNN Money,
7 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Exacerbated.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/exacerbated. Accessed 15 Feb. 2026.
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