bothering 1 of 2

noun

as in harassment
the act of making unwelcome intrusions upon another one more bothering, and I'm going to kick you out of here

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bothering

2 of 2

verb

present participle of bother
1
as in worrying
to thrust oneself upon (another) without invitation I am never going to get this work done if people don't stop wandering into the room and bothering me

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in bugging
to disturb the peace of mind of (someone) especially by repeated disagreeable acts it bothers me when obviously sick people go to movies and spend the whole time coughing and sneezing

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3
as in fearing
to experience concern or anxiety just get the basic concept right and don't bother about the details

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4
as in distracting
to trouble the mind of; to make uneasy the boss's cryptic message about changes to the company bothered me

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of bothering
Verb
Wasps are generally more interested in building their colony and finding food than in bothering people. — Jessica Safavimehr, Southern Living, 17 July 2026 But after going ahead, England manager Thomas Tuchel tried to shut the back door by throwing on countless defenders and not bothering to attack Argentina anymore. — Aleks Klosok, CNN Money, 15 July 2026 As early as 2010, TV stations noticed people were sending short videos shot vertically, making some wonder why people weren’t bothering to rotate their phones. — Hernan Lopez, Variety, 10 July 2026 The only thing missing was a set of drums, and a place to bang on them without bothering anyone. — Simon Vozick-Levinson, Rolling Stone, 9 July 2026 Travis was snapped having a blast bothering Jason as the duo attended a match between Jupiter Links GC and The Bay Golf Club at SoFi Center on March 3. — Stephanie Sengwe, PEOPLE, 2 July 2026 For now, the Royals hope to figure out exactly what’s bothering him. — Kansas City Star, 1 July 2026 That shift may help explain why some couples notice their partner’s scent bothering them more during periods of conflict. — Lauren Jarvis-Gibson, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 23 June 2026 The chest pain that had been bothering her finally let up. — Tyler Quattrin, Twin Cities, 19 June 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for bothering
  1. harassment
  2. worrying
  3. bugging
  4. distracting
  5. disturbance
  6. annoying
  7. irritating
  8. concerning
Noun
  • There are limits to the response that the accused can make in response to claims of harassment.
    — Declan Gallagher, Entertainment Weekly, 15 July 2026
  • The progressive recruiters questioned whether the harassment complaint was true, this person added, and Williams denied it.
    — Nicholas Wu, semafor.com, 15 July 2026
Definition of harassment
Verb
  • The young Brits' last year in secondary school finds Charlie starting a pride club, Nick worrying about an uncertain future, and both considering the impact of long-distance love.
    — Brian Truitt, USA Today, 17 July 2026
  • Because vacation is about decompressing and disconnecting from daily life—not about worrying what’s going on at home.
    — Jessica Puckett, Condé Nast Traveler, 15 July 2026
Definition of worrying
Verb
  • The necessity of the trip at all is what's been bugging me.
    — Will Greenwald, PC Magazine, 12 June 2026
  • His doctor had been bugging him for years to get a colonoscopy because of his age, but Driggers declined.
    — The Washington Post, San Diego Union-Tribune, 2 June 2026
Definition of bugging
Verb
  • The previous time the New York Knicks won an NBA Final, in 1973, in-game sound was basically unheard-of in basketball—too distracting for players and fans.
    — Ellen Cushing, The Atlantic, 17 July 2026
  • Low-cost drones are also increasingly being paired with high-end weapons to improve their effectiveness by distracting or overwhelming enemy air defenses.
    — Elsa Ohlen, CNBC, 15 July 2026
Definition of distracting
Noun
  • The untethered AUVs hover above the seabed instead of dragging equipment across it, reducing sediment disturbance and limiting ecosystem disruption.
    — Jijo Malayil, Interesting Engineering, 15 July 2026
  • The Saharan Air Layer can suppress thunderstorm development and increase atmospheric stability across parts of the tropical Atlantic, temporarily reducing the odds that disturbances develop into tropical storms or hurricanes.
    — Brandi D. Addison, USA Today, 14 July 2026
Definition of disturbance
Verb
  • Weird; annoying even – but the floaters did not seem urgent.
    — Peter Ubel, Forbes.com, 20 May 2026
  • My biggest concern about adding a tracking device around Mya’s neck was annoying her or creating disruption.
    — Tyler Hayes, PC Magazine, 13 May 2026
Definition of annoying
Verb
  • And these lively, sometimes irritating, often messy, but always essential noises are the product of our species connecting and caring for one another.
    — Dana Suskind, Time, 14 July 2026
  • They will also be allowed to shoot pepper balls, which release a cloud of irritating spray into the air around the animals.
    — Sharon Bernstein, Sacbee.com, 11 July 2026
Definition of irritating
Verb
  • Those were the two most common applications of the rules concerning an unplayable ball, but a third option was available to Spieth.
    — Brody Miller, New York Times, 14 July 2026
  • The finding is concerning as space debris at such high altitudes behaves differently from that circling closer to Earth.
    — Tereza Pultarova, Space.com, 13 July 2026
Definition of concerning

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Cite this Entry

“Bothering.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/bothering. Accessed 21 Jul. 2026.

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More from Merriam-Webster on bothering

Nglish: Translation of bothering for Spanish Speakers

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