compound
kum-POWNDverbMeaning to make a problem worse by adding to it
Memory hook com-POUND: POUND more trouble on top. Theo spills his milk, and then the puppy runs through the puddle and tracks white paw prints across the whole house. The puppy compounded the problem.
Arriving late, Dev compounded the problem by forgetting his uniform.
In context The town’s mistake in closing the bridge was compounded when it closed the ferry too, leaving the island with no way to reach the mainland.
Similar worsen, aggravate, add to, exacerbate
Opposite lessen, ease, alleviate
From Latin componere, “to put together”: com (together) + ponere (to put).