aggrieve

verb

ag·​grieve ə-ˈgrēv 

aggrieved; aggrieving

transitive verb

1

: to give pain or trouble to : distress

2

: to inflict injury on

Choose the Right Synonym for aggrieve

wrong, oppress, persecute, aggrieve mean to injure unjustly or outrageously.

wrong implies inflicting injury either unmerited or out of proportion to what one deserves.

a penal system that had wronged him

oppress suggests inhumane imposing of burdens one cannot endure or exacting more than one can perform.

a people oppressed by a warmongering tyrant

persecute implies a relentless and unremitting subjection to annoyance or suffering.

a child persecuted by constant criticism

aggrieve implies suffering caused by an infringement or denial of rights.

a legal aid society representing aggrieved minority groups

Examples of aggrieve in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

When Arthur Ashe rejects her appeal to support the cause of the women’s player, she is aggrieved. —Charles McNulty, Los Angeles Times, 20 June 2023

And while many of Erdogan’s critics are aggrieved, others saw no viable option besides the president. —Nadeen Ebrahim, CNN, 29 May 2023

The order ends with the judge saying that many of the people who are able to talk about their experiences in Alaska’s child welfare system are so aggrieved by it that they are not listened to. —Michelle Theriault Boots, Anchorage Daily News, 24 May 2023

Now, rather than view North Korea as an unruly, angry neighbor, China has welcomed it, along with Russia and Iran, as part of what White House officials call a coalition of the aggrieved. —Choe Sang-Hun, New York Times, 26 Apr. 2023

Word History

Etymology

Middle English agreven "to affect adversely, disturb, distress," borrowed from Anglo-French agrever "to make burdensome, worsen," going back to Latin aggravāre "to weigh down, burden, make worse" — more at aggravate

Note: The vowel -e- in agrever shows influence of grever "to grieve."

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Legal Definition

aggrieve

transitive verb

ag·​grieve ə-ˈgrēv 

aggrieved; aggrieving

: to inflict injury on: as

a

: to adversely affect the interests of

was not the party aggrieved by the exemption

b

: to infringe or deny the rights of

a person aggrieved by an unlawful search and seizure

—Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure Rule 41(g)