verb phrase · neutral
get worse
UK/ɡet wɜːs/US/ɡet wɜːrs/get WORSE
speakingtask2
to deteriorate; to become more unpleasant, bad, or severe.
Examples
“If you ignore the problem, things might get worse.”
“His cold got worse after he went out in the rain.”
“The traffic usually gets worse in the evenings.”
Band 8 sentence
“If environmental policies are not enforced, air quality will continue to get worse across urban areas.”
Collocations
- get worse over time
- get worse quickly
Word family
get worse v phrasegot worse v (past)getting worse v‑ing
Common mistakes
It becomes worseing.→It is getting worse.
Say it for a higher band
5become bad→6deteriorate→7+get worse
Synonyms
deteriorate
Easily confused
deteriorate
“The patient's condition began to deteriorate.”
Related words
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