agitate

verb

ag·​i·​tate ˈa-jə-ˌtāt How to pronounce agitate (audio)
agitated; agitating

transitive verb

1
: to excite and often trouble the mind or feelings of : disturb
My presence did not appear to agitate or irritate him as before, and he accepted my services quietly …Charlotte Brontë
2
a
: to discuss excitedly and earnestly
b
: to stir up public discussion of
… trying to agitate the old question of the embezzlement of the remains of the Confederate Treasury.Robert Penn Warren
3
a
obsolete : to give motion to
b
: to move with an irregular, rapid, or violent action
The storm agitated the sea.

intransitive verb

: to attempt to arouse public feeling
agitated for better schools
Choose the Right Synonym for agitate

shake, agitate, rock, convulse mean to move up and down or to and fro with some violence.

shake often carries a further implication of a particular purpose.

shake well before using

agitate suggests a violent and prolonged tossing or stirring.

an ocean agitated by storms

rock suggests a swinging or swaying motion resulting from violent impact or upheaval.

the whole city was rocked by the explosion

convulse suggests a violent pulling or wrenching as of a body in a paroxysm.

spectators were convulsed with laughter

discompose, disquiet, disturb, perturb, agitate, upset, fluster mean to destroy capacity for collected thought or decisive action.

discompose implies some degree of loss of self-control or self-confidence especially through emotional stress.

discomposed by the loss of his beloved wife

disquiet suggests loss of sense of security or peace of mind.

the disquieting news of factories closing

disturb implies interference with one's mental processes caused by worry, perplexity, or interruption.

the discrepancy in accounts disturbed me

perturb implies deep disturbance of mind and emotions.

perturbed by her husband's strange behavior

agitate suggests obvious external signs of nervous or emotional excitement.

in his agitated state we could see he was unable to work

upset implies the disturbance of normal or habitual functioning by disappointment, distress, or grief.

the family's constant bickering upsets the youngest child

fluster suggests bewildered agitation.

his declaration of love completely flustered her

Examples of agitate in a Sentence

If I talk about the problem with him it just agitates him even more. Some members of the union have been agitating for a strike. A few local residents have been agitating against a military presence. The mixture is heated and then agitated.
Recent Examples on the Web Covid closures had brought new attention to the role of public schools; the right-wing group Moms for Liberty was just starting to agitate against classroom discussions of race, gender, and sexuality. Molly Fischer, The New Yorker, 18 Mar. 2024 Already agitated United States-Israel relations have taken a further dive – to what some say is their lowest point ever – as the humanitarian crisis in the Gaza Strip has worsened. Howard Lafranchi, The Christian Science Monitor, 18 Mar. 2024 Against that backdrop, Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni — herself the single mother of a single child — is agitating for her compatriots to give parenting a second chance, and in December brought Elon Musk to Rome to beat that drum. Alessandra Migliaccio, Fortune Europe, 11 Mar. 2024 On the other hand, the union representing the company’s rank-and-file employees has been agitating for higher wages ahead of negotiations that started today, a strike authorization vote in July, and a contract expiration in September. Melvin Backman, Quartz, 8 Mar. 2024 After 23 years of quantitative easing, global markets are agitating for Governor Ueda’s team to normalize Tokyo’s interest rate policy. William Pesek, Forbes, 29 Feb. 2024 The three became friends, sharing studios, painting together, agitating for change — and closely watching Manet. Washington Post, 7 Mar. 2024 The asset management firms pointed to their independence in withdrawing from C100+, noting that the group was previously focused on agitating for clearer disclosure and not seeking specific action from. Amanda Gerut, Fortune, 5 Mar. 2024 Think of agitating a snow globe to help others understand how chaotic a process of rebuilding can look. Sherzod Odilov, Forbes, 26 Feb. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'agitate.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Middle English agitat "set in motion," borrowed from Latin agitātus, past participle of agitāre "to set in motion, drive before one, arouse, disturb, deal with, turn over in the mind," frequentative of agere "to drive, be in motion, do, perform" — more at agent

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of agitate was in the 15th century

Dictionary Entries Near agitate

Cite this Entry

“Agitate.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/agitate. Accessed 29 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

agitate

verb
ag·​i·​tate ˈaj-ə-ˌtāt How to pronounce agitate (audio)
agitated; agitating
1
: to move with an irregular, rapid, or violent action
water agitated by wind
2
: to stir up : excite, disturb
agitated by bad news
3
: to try to stir up public feeling
agitate for equal rights
agitatedly
-ˌtāt-əd-lē
adverb
agitation noun

More from Merriam-Webster on agitate

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