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Judging by its spelling and meaning, you might think that agita is simply a shortened version of agitation, but that's not the case. Both agitation and the verb it comes form, agitate, derive from Latin agere, meaning "to drive." Agita, which first appeared in American English in the mid-late 20th century, comes from a dialectical pronunciation of the Italian word acido, meaning "heartburn" or "acid," from Latin acidus. (Agita is also occasionally used in English with the meaning "heartburn.") For a while the word's usage was limited to New York City and surrounding regions, but the word became more widespread in the mid-1990s.
Synonyms
Examples of agita in a Sentence
Bill Reinhard, New York Daily News, 25 May 2024
Much of the agita surrounding Feinstein stemmed from her stance on policy, particularly from those on the left who long considered the former San Francisco mayor too moderate for their taste.
—Mark Z. Barabak, Los Angeles Times, 31 May 2024
Ultimately, though, the most agita per viewing comes from the Sharks.
—Dieter Kurtenbach, The Mercury News, 12 Mar. 2024
Most of the posts, per usual, were jokes: wry observations to help soothe the agita that comes with being alive when everything feels unstable.
—Angela Watercutter, WIRED, 8 Mar. 2024
See all Example Sentences for agita 
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'agita.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near agita
Cite this Entry
“Agita.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/agita. Accessed 4 Jul. 2024.
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