pester

B2 Topic:People & Society

US /ˈpɛstɚ/ UK /ˈpɛstə/ See IPA manual

Minimal pairs

Sounds like pastor /ɛ/ vs /æ/

Meanings

1

verb
to annoy or bother someone persistently

The child would pester his mother with questions.
2

verb
to repeatedly ask for something in a way that is irritating

She would pester him for a ride to the mall.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

1 verb · to annoy or bother someone... nag bother bug hassle badger

2 verb · to repeatedly ask for... harass plague press importune

More hound

Opposites

leave aloneignore

Etymology

Probably from Old French empestrer ('to hobble; to encumber'), later associated with Latin pastor ('shepherd'); into Middle English pester 'to annoy; to harass', now 'to bother persistently'.

External links

# pester

**Type:** Word
**Level:** B2
**Part of speech:** verb
**IPA (US):** /ˈpɛstɚ/
**IPA (UK):** /ˈpɛstə/

## Meanings
1. to annoy or bother someone persistently
2. to repeatedly ask for something in a way that is irritating

## Examples
- The child would pester his mother with questions.
- She would pester him for a ride to the mall.

## Synonyms
- nag
- bother
- bug
- hassle
- badger
- hound
- harass
- plague
- press
- importune

## Antonyms
- leave alone
- ignore

## Etymology
Probably from Old French empestrer ('to hobble; to encumber'), later associated with Latin pastor ('shepherd'); into Middle English pester 'to annoy; to harass', now 'to bother persistently'.

## AI Etymology
Pester is traced through probably from Old French empestrer ('to hobble; to encumber'), later associated with Latin pastor ('shepherd'); into Middle English pester 'to annoy; to harass', now 'to bother persistently'. In current use it is a verb meaning "to annoy or bother someone persistently". That sense is explained by the older material without requiring a speculative semantic step: the inherited or borrowed base supplies the field of meaning, while the English formation fixes its modern role. The uncertainty belongs to the etymology itself and should be kept: the older ancestry is not presented as more secure than it is. The semantic development is therefore important as well as the form: the word moves from the older concrete, technical, or literal setting into the present figurative or specialized sense.

## Topics
- People & Society

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pester

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