Certain sets of words in the English language tend to confuse people. I have found the following to be among them:
AGGRAVATE / IRRITATE
The verb aggravate means make worse; exacerbate. The verb irritate means create a new condition or annoy.
INCORRECT: I do not wish to irritate my rash by scratching it.
CORRECT: I do not wish to aggravate my rash by scratching it.
INCORRECT: My coworkers aggravate me when they don’t respond to my emails.
CORRECT: My coworkers irritate me when they don’t respond to my emails.
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