Definitions
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
- v. To cause slight irritation to (another) by troublesome, often repeated acts.
- v. Archaic To harass or disturb by repeated attacks.
Century Dictionary and Cyclopedia
- n. A disturbed state of feeling arising from displeasing acts or unpleasant circumstances; discomfort; vexation; trouble; annoyance.
- n. A thing or circumstance that causes discomfort; an annoyance.
- n. [Now chiefly poetic; the common word in prose is annoyance.]
- To be hateful or troublesome: followed by to.
- [By omission of reflexive pronoun.] To be troubled, disquieted, vexed.
- To be hateful, troublesome, or vexatious to; trouble, disquiet, disturb, vex, molest, harass, plague; irk, weary, bore, especially by repeated acts: as, to annoy a person by perpetual questioning; to annoy the enemy by raids: in the passive, followed by at or about, formerly by of.
- Synonyms Molest, Plague, etc. (see tease), trouble, disturb, disquiet, vex, irritate, fret, embarrass, perplex.
Wiktionary
- v. To disturb or irritate, especially by continued or repeated acts; to bother with unpleasant deeds.
- v. To do something to upset or anger someone; to be troublesome.
- v. To molest; to harm; to injure.
- n. A feeling of discomfort or vexation caused by what one dislikes.
- n. That which causes such a feeling.
GNU Webster's 1913
- v. To disturb or irritate, especially by continued or repeated acts; to tease; to ruffle in mind; to vex
- v. To molest, incommode, or harm.
- n. A feeling of discomfort or vexation caused by what one dislikes; also, whatever causes such a feeling.
WordNet 3.0
- v. cause annoyance in; disturb, especially by minor irritations
Etymologies
- Middle English anoien, from Old French anoier, ennuyer, from Vulgar Latin *inodiāre, to make odious, from Latin in odio, odious : in, in; see in-2 + odiō, ablative of odium, hatred; see od- in Indo-European roots.
Examples
“Note that "annoy" is part of the intent element of the statute -- it requires the intent to annoy, abuse, threaten or harass.”
“The French word _ennui_, which now only means weariness of mind, signified formerly injury, and the vexation or hatred caused thereby; something like the English word "annoy," as in Shakespeare's Richard III., v. 3:”
“Whether Mr. Colen's plan was to annoy is not clear, and this aspect of not knowing is an issue.”
The Huffington Post: Noah Becker: Dan Colen at Gagosian Revisited
“Agnes Quill is the story of a teenage detective, the haunted city she lives in, the strange cases she solves, and the ghosts who help, hinder, or just plain annoy her.”
“Serial killer plots (or subplots) just plain annoy me.”
Great Things Come to Those Who Wait : The Kick-Ass Mystic Ninjas
“I beg your pardon, Robin, but I did not employ the word annoy," protested the Count.”
“I begged, and prayed, and appealed to his pity, but he would pull the book away from me, gabble bits of ballads in my ear as I was struggling with _Effectual Calling_, tip up the form on which I was seated, and, in short, annoy me in twenty different ways.”
“s exhibition at Gagosian was meant to annoy is not clear.”
The Huffington Post: Noah Becker: Dan Colen at Gagosian Revisited
“I'm hoping their robocalls annoy people so much they will BADLY backfire.”
In New McCain Robocall, Rudy Giuliani Suggests Obama Opposes Jailing Murderers And Rapists
“Cynthia," he said, "I would not by an act or a word annoy or trouble you.”
Lists
‘annoy’ hasn't been added to any lists yet.
knitandpurl "Today, the meaning of annoy is mild – 'vex, irritate'. But when the word first came into English from French in the fourteenth century, it had a much stronger sense – 'to be hateful or odious' to someone. By the time of the Civil War it had developed meanings of 'injure, harm', especially in a military context."
David Crystal, By Hook Or By Crook, p 214 Dec 20, 2008