bother
Americanverb (used with object)
verb (used without object)
noun
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something troublesome, burdensome, or annoying.
Doing the laundry every week can be a terrible bother.
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effort, work, or worry.
Gardening takes more bother than it's worth.
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a worried or perplexed state.
Don't get into such a bother about small matters.
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someone or something that bothers or annoys.
My cousin is a perpetual bother to me.
interjection
verb
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(tr) to give annoyance, pain, or trouble to; irritate
his bad leg is bothering him again
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(tr) to trouble (a person) by repeatedly disturbing; pester
stop bothering your father!
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(intr) to take the time or trouble; concern oneself
don't bother to come with me
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(tr) to make (a person) alarmed or confused
the thought of her husband's return clearly bothered her
noun
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a state of worry, trouble, or confusion
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a person or thing that causes fuss, trouble, or annoyance
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informal a disturbance or fight; trouble (esp in the phrase a spot of bother )
interjection
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. )
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
It had been bothering me for a couple of weeks, so I went to see my dentist, hoping for the best and preparing for the worst, having had two extractions in less than two years.
From Los Angeles Times
"I'm not too bothered about my place in the team," said Ahmed, who became England's youngest men's Test cricketer in 2022.
From BBC
When tariffs were low, companies often didn’t bother to investigate the first sale price because the paperwork required to prove it was considerable.
In the complaint, Seitz alleged that Austin, Hernandez and a third man began to bother and harass him outside after the bar closed, “including by repeatedly reaching for the sunglasses resting on” his head.
From Los Angeles Times
Does Mr. Paxton’s baggage—my deliberately foggy term—bother his fans?
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.
