Exacerbate
Exacerbate verb - To make more severe.
Usage example: a misconceived plan that only exacerbated the city's traffic problem
Nearby Words: exacerbation, exacerbating
Help
Help verb - To make more bearable or less severe.
Usage example: the new ointment didn't help Josh's sunburn one bit
Exacerbate is an antonym for help.
Common collocations
| life | exacerbate life | help life |
| reputation | exacerbate reputation | help reputation |
| situation | exacerbate situation | help situation |
| matters | exacerbate matters | help matters |
Both words in one sentence
-
But Sawamura, incensed by his inability to help Chris, ends up using his confusing pitches to exacerbate Zaizen's injury instead.
Source: Manga / Diamond no Ace -
Dysfunction Junction: Your generals and potential queens all have some kind of serious personality flaw or inner grievance that you can either help them overcome — or exacerbate further — with your advice and actions.
- While he is often helpful, he rarely resolves the problems of the girls he attempts to help out, and sometimes his Chronic Hero Syndrome decisions exacerbate the problem, as seen in the case of Nadeko Sengoku.
Source: Failure Hero
Cite this Source
Help and Exacerbate. (2016). Retrieved 2026, July 21, from https://thesaurus.plus/related/exacerbate/help
Exacerbate & Help. N.p., 2016. Web. 21 Jul. 2026. <https://thesaurus.plus/related/exacerbate/help>.
Help or Exacerbate. 2016. Accessed July 21, 2026. https://thesaurus.plus/related/exacerbate/help.
Google Ngram Viewer shows how "exacerbate" and "help" have occurred on timeline