molestation

C2+ Topic:Actions & Processes

US /ˌmoʊlɛˈsteɪʃən/ UK /ˌməʊlɛˈsteɪʃən/ See IPA manual

Meanings

1

noun
the act of annoying, harassing, or assaulting someone

The law provides strict penalties for the molestation of minors.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

1 noun · the act of annoying,... harassment annoyance abuse assault persecution vexation

Opposites

protection comfort

Word family

Related forms molestmolestermolesting

Etymology

From Old French molestation, from Latin molestātiō, from molestāre ('to trouble, annoy'), from molestus ('troublesome'), related to mōlēs ('mass, burden').

molestātiō Latin molestus Latin mōlēs Latin

View etymology graph ->

Topics

Actions & Processes Word Formation & Derivatives

External links

# molestation

**Type:** Word
**Level:** C2+
**Part of speech:** noun
**IPA (US):** /ˌmoʊlɛˈsteɪʃən/
**IPA (UK):** /ˌməʊlɛˈsteɪʃən/

## Meanings
1. the act of annoying, harassing, or assaulting someone

## Examples
- The law provides strict penalties for the molestation of minors.

## Synonyms
- harassment
- annoyance
- abuse
- assault
- persecution
- vexation

## Antonyms
- protection
- comfort

## Related Forms
- molest
- molester
- molesting

## Roots and Affixes
- Root: molestātiō
- Root: molestus
- Root: mōlēs

## Etymology
From Old French molestation, from Latin molestātiō, from molestāre ('to trouble, annoy'), from molestus ('troublesome'), related to mōlēs ('mass, burden').

## AI Etymology
Molestation comes from Old French molestation, from Latin molestātiō, from molestāre ('to trouble, annoy'), from molestus ('troublesome'), related to mōlēs ('mass, burden'). The etymological trail includes Latin molestātiō, Latin molestus, Latin mōlēs. The same word family includes molest, molester, molesting. Its current noun use means "the act of annoying, harassing, or assaulting someone".

## Topics
- Actions & Processes
- Word Formation & Derivatives

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