Etymograph

English

exacerbate

Exacerbate comes from Latin exacerbātus ‘exasperated’, from exacerbō ‘to provoke’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *h₂eḱ- ‘sharp’.

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₂eḱ-1‘sharp’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₂eḱrós1‘sharp’reconstructed
  3. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*akris1‘sharp’reconstructed
  4. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*akriðos1reconstructed
  5. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEacerbus1‘harsh, bitter, unripe, sour, premature, not yet marriageable’
  6. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEacerbō1‘to make harsh or bitter, embitter’
  7. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEexacerbō2‘to provoke’
  8. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEexacerbātus2‘exasperated’perfect passive participle of exacerbō
  9. Englishearliest quotation 1986exacerbate2

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, Latin exacerbo
  2. 2 Wiktionary, English exacerbate
  3. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1986, Peter P. Cheng, 1978: The Four Modernizations on the March: “Sino-Soviet relations were exacerbated by a border incident on…”.

Lineage

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₂eḱ-Wiktionary, Latin exacerbo‘sharp’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₂eḱrósWiktionary, Latin exacerbo‘sharp’reconstructed
  3. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*akrisWiktionary, Latin exacerbo‘sharp’reconstructed
  4. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*akriðosWiktionary, Latin exacerboreconstructed
  5. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEacerbusWiktionary, Latin exacerbo‘harsh, bitter, unripe, sour, premature, not yet marriageable’
  6. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEacerbōWiktionary, Latin exacerbo‘to make harsh or bitter, embitter’
  7. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEexacerbōWiktionary, English exacerbate‘to provoke’
  8. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEexacerbātusWiktionary, English exacerbate‘exasperated’perfect passive participle of exacerbō
  9. Englishearliest quotation 1986exacerbateWiktionary, English exacerbate. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1986, Peter P. Cheng, 1978: The Four Modernizations on the March: “Sino-Soviet relations were exacerbated by a border incident on…”

first attested First attested in 1660 (as stated in Wiktionary’s etymology)

The story

First attested in 1660; borrowed from Latin exacerbātus, perfect passive participle of Latin exacerbō (‘to provoke’) (see -ate (verb-forming suffix)), from ex- (‘out of; thoroughly’) + acerbō (‘to embitter, harshen or worsen’).

Full etymology on Wiktionary

Linked words

through Proto-Indo-European *h₂eḱ- ‘sharp’

hear, edge, egg, ear, acid, hammer, axe, oxide, acute, acne, paragon, acupuncture, acacia, hark, acumen, acme, acuity, acetate, acyl, roselle, rosacea, 73 more

through Proto-Indo-European *h₂eḱrós ‘sharp’

mediocre, mediocrity, 14 more

through Proto-Italic *akris ‘sharp’

eager, vinegar, acrimony, acrid, 8 more

through Latin acerbus ‘harsh, bitter, unripe, sour, premature, not…’

acerbic, 6 more

Today it means

verb To make worse (a problem, bad situation, negative feeling, etc.).

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “exacerbate”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entry for Latin exacerbo. By Wiktionary contributors, CC BY-SA 4.0, via kaikki.org (dump of Oct 3 2026); text adapted and restructured. Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word. License.

Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *h₂eḱ- / exacerbate

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