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Synonyms

bother

American  
[both-er] / ˈbɒð ər /

verb (used with object)

  1. to annoy; give trouble to; pester.

    His little sister kept bothering him for candy.

  2. to cause unease, anxiety, or worry in (someone).

    I hadn't realized how much being in a small boat bothers me until we got into choppy waters.
    Synonyms:
    disturb, molest, irritate, vex, harass

  3. to bewilder; confuse.

    His inability to understand the joke bothered him.

verb (used without object)

  1. to take the trouble; trouble or inconvenience oneself.

    Don't bother to call. He has no time to bother with trifles.

noun

  1. something troublesome, burdensome, or annoying.

    Doing the laundry every week can be a terrible bother.

  2. effort, work, or worry.

    Gardening takes more bother than it's worth.

  3. a worried or perplexed state.

    Don't get into such a bother about small matters.

  4. someone or something that bothers or annoys.

    My cousin is a perpetual bother to me.

interjection

  1. Chiefly British. (used to express mild irritation.)

bother British  
/ ˈbɒðə /

verb

  1. (tr) to give annoyance, pain, or trouble to; irritate

    his bad leg is bothering him again

  2. (tr) to trouble (a person) by repeatedly disturbing; pester

    stop bothering your father!

  3. (intr) to take the time or trouble; concern oneself

    don't bother to come with me

  4. (tr) to make (a person) alarmed or confused

    the thought of her husband's return clearly bothered her
"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

noun

  1. a state of worry, trouble, or confusion

  2. a person or thing that causes fuss, trouble, or annoyance

  3. informal a disturbance or fight; trouble (esp in the phrase a spot of bother )

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

interjection

  1. an exclamation of slight annoyance

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Related Words

Bother, annoy, plague, tease imply persistent interference with one's comfort or peace of mind. Bother suggests causing trouble or weariness or repeatedly interrupting in the midst of pressing duties. To annoy is to vex or irritate by bothering. Plague is a strong word, connoting unremitting annoyance and harassment. To tease is to provoke or irritate persistently with petty distractions.

Other Word Forms

  • unbothered adjective
  • unbothering adjective

Etymology

Origin of bother

First recorded in 1710–20; origin obscure; originally Hiberno-English; perhaps a hypercorrection of bodder, an alternative early form; perhaps a variant of pother ( def. )

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.