s'agacer
get annoyed
Se mettre un peu en colère ou devenir irrité à cause de quelque chose ou de quelqu’un.
Definition & meaning
s’agacer means to become annoyed, irritated, or exasperated. It describes a growing feeling of irritation, often caused by someone’s behavior, a repeated problem, noise, or an inconvenience.
- s’agacer de quelque chose / de quelqu’un: to get annoyed by something or someone
- Elle s’agace des interruptions constantes. — “She gets annoyed by the constant interruptions.”
- s’agacer que + subjunctive: to be annoyed that something happens
- Il s’agace qu’on ne l’écoute pas. — “He is annoyed that no one listens to him.”
The related non-reflexive verb agacer means to annoy or irritate someone: Cette situation m’agace — “This situation annoys me.”
Grammar & Word origin
s’agacer is a pronominal, regular first-group verb ending in -er. The pronoun changes according to the subject:
- je m’agace — I get annoyed
- tu t’agaces — you get annoyed
- il/elle s’agace — he/she gets annoyed
- nous nous agaçons — we get annoyed
- vous vous agacez — you get annoyed
- ils/elles s’agacent — they get annoyed
It is formed from the reflexive pronoun se and agacer, meaning “to annoy” or “to irritate.” The e of se is elided before a vowel: se agacer becomes s’agacer. The historical origin of agacer is uncertain; it is an old French verb that originally expressed the idea of teasing or irritating.
Synonyms & antonyms
Synonyms
- s’irriter — to become irritated; slightly more formal than s’agacer
- s’énerver — to get upset or worked up; often stronger and more emotional
- s’impatienter — to become impatient, especially because of waiting or delays
- s’exaspérer — to become extremely annoyed or exasperated; stronger than s’agacer
- se fâcher — to become angry; generally stronger than simple irritation
Antonyms
- se calmer — to calm down after being irritated or upset
- rester calme — to remain calm and not become annoyed
- se détendre — to relax, the opposite of becoming tense or irritated
Common phrases & collocations
- s’agacer facilement — to get annoyed easily
- s’agacer rapidement — to become irritated quickly
- s’agacer de quelque chose — to be annoyed by something
- s’agacer du comportement de quelqu’un — to be annoyed by someone’s behavior
- commencer à s’agacer — to start getting annoyed
- ne pas s’agacer — not to get annoyed
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Examples
Elle s'agace facilement quand il y a du bruit.verb
She gets annoyed easily when there is noise.
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