worsen

Meanings

1. 1verbintransitive

   To become worse than before, as a situation, condition or feeling does.

   Grammar: No object: the weather worsened.

   Patterns

   • something worsens

   Her cough worsened over the weekend.

   The traffic worsens every winter.

   If the situation worsens, we will call the doctor.

2. 2verbtransitive

   To make something worse than it was.

   Grammar: Takes an object: delays worsened the problem.

   Patterns

   • worsen something

   Constant stress can worsen the pain.

   The new rules only worsened the confusion.

   Cutting the staff would worsen the already long waiting times.

Word forms

Common combinations

worsen rapidly

His condition worsened rapidly overnight.

worsen the situation

Shouting would only worsen the situation.

worsen over time

Her eyesight began to worsen over time.

symptoms worsen

Seek help if your symptoms worsen.

further worsen

Heavy rain could further worsen the flooding.

Synonyms and how they differ

deteriorate

Deteriorate is more formal and suggests steady decline, while worsen is simpler and can describe a small change.

decline

Decline suggests going down in quality or number gradually, and worsen need not.

aggravate

Aggravate, in this sense, means to make a problem or condition worse and always takes an object.

exacerbate

Exacerbate is formal and takes an object, usually a problem or illness, while worsen can be used without an object.

Opposites

Word family

worse adjective

of lower quality or more severe than before

worsening adjective

becoming worse

worst adjective

the most bad

worsened adjective

made worse

Commonly confused: worsen or worsted?

Practice

Make it your own

Write a sentence using “worsen”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.

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