| Main Entry: | exacerbate |
| Part of Speech: | verb |
| Definition: | infuriate; make worse |
Synonyms: |
add insult to injury, aggravate, annoy, egg on, embitter, enrage, envenom, exasperate, excite, fan the flames, feed the fire, go from bad to worse, heat up, heighten, hit on, increase, inflame, intensify, irritate, madden, provoke, push one's button, rattle one's cage, rub salt in a wound, vex, worsen |
| Notes: | to aggravate is to make something worse, while to exacerbate is to increase something's bitterness or harshness |
Antonyms: |
aid, calm, comfort, help, soothe |
| Main Entry: | foment |
| Part of Speech: | verb |
| Definition: | instigate, provoke |
Synonyms: |
abet, agitate, arouse, brew, cultivate, encourage, excite, fan the flames, foster, goad, incite, nurse, nurture, promote, quicken, raise, set, set on, sow the seeds, spur, start, stimulate, stir up, whip up |
Antonyms: |
cease, dampen, discourage, dissuade, stop |
| Main Entry: | make worse |
| Part of Speech: | verb |
| Definition: | worsen a situation |
Synonyms: |
add insult to injury, aggravate, exacerbate, fan the flames, intensify, irritate, rub salt into the wound, twist the knife in the wound, worsen |