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From Middle English anoyen, a borrowing from Anglo-Norman anuier, Old French enuier (“to molest, harm, tire”), from Late Latin inodiō (“cause aversion, make hateful”, verb), from the phrase in odiō (“hated”), from Latin odium (“hatred”). Displaced native Old English dreċċan and gremman.
annoy (third-person singular simple present annoys, present participle annoying, simple past and past participle annoyed)
- (transitive) To disturb or irritate, especially by continued or repeated acts; to bother with unpleasant deeds.
Marc loved his sister, but when she annoyed him he wanted to switch her off.
1735, Alexander Pope, Epistle to Dr. Arbuthnot[1]:
Yet let me flap this bug with gilded wings, / This painted child of dirt that stinks and stings; / Whose buzz the witty and the fair annoys, / Yet wit ne'er tastes, and beauty ne'r enjoys.
2013 May 25, “No hiding place”, in The Economist[2], volume 407, number 8837, page 74:
In America alone, people spent $170 billion on “direct marketing”—junk mail of both the physical and electronic varieties—last year. Yet of those who received unsolicited adverts through the post, only 3% bought anything as a result. If the bumf arrived electronically, the take-up rate was 0.1%. And for online adverts the “conversion” into sales was a minuscule 0.01%. That means about $165 billion was spent not on drumming up business, but on annoying people, creating landfill and cluttering spam filters.
- (intransitive) To do something to upset or anger someone; to be troublesome.
1993, D.C. Fontana, Peter Allan Fields, “Dax”, in Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, season 1, episode 8, spoken by Kira Nerys (Nana Visitor):
You Klaestrons are allies of the Cardassians; your knowledge of the station confirms that they must have given you the layouts. Which not only compromises Bajoran security, but also... annoys us.
- (transitive) To molest; to harm; to injure.
to annoy an army by impeding its march, or by a cannonade
1644 December 3 (Gregorian calendar), John Evelyn, “[Diary entry for 23 November 1644]”, in William Bray, editor, Memoirs, Illustrative of the Life and Writings of John Evelyn, […], 2nd edition, volume I, London: Henry Colburn, […]; and sold by John and Arthur Arch, […], published 1819, →OCLC:
tapers put into lanterns or sconces of several-coloured, oiled paper, that the wind might not annoy them
1691, Matthew Prior, Pastoral to Dr. Turner, Bishop of Ely:
Say, what can more our tortured souls annoy / Than to behold, admire, and lose our joy?
- please
- See also Thesaurus:annoy
to disturb or irritate
- Arabic: أَزْعَجَ (ʔazʕaja)
- Basque: gogait eragin, zirikatu
- Bengali: জ্বালাতন করা (bn) (jalaton kora)
- Bulgarian: безпоко́я (bg) impf (bezpokója), дразня́ (bg) impf (draznjá)
- Catalan: molestar (ca)
- Cherokee: ᎠᏕᏯᏙᏗᎭ (adeyadodiha)
- Chichonyi-Chidzihana-Chikauma: sinya
- Chinese:
- Czech: obtěžovat (cs), rušit (cs)
- Danish: forstyrre, irritere
- Dutch: ergeren (nl), vervelen (nl)
- East Central German: aarchrn
- Esperanto: tedi, agaci (eo), malamuzi
- Ewe: do dziku
- Finnish: ärsyttää (fi), kiusata (fi)
- French: gêner (fr), ennuyer (fr), embêter (fr), agacer (fr), asticoter (fr)
- Galician: anoxar, enfastiar (gl), enfadar (gl)
- Georgian: თავის მობეზრება (tavis mobezreba), გულის გაწყალება (gulis gac̣q̇aleba)
- German: stören (de), ärgern (de), belästigen (de), nerven (de), verägern, verdrießen (de), aufregen (de), vergrätzen (de), erregen (de), krank machen, auf die Nerven gehen (de), belästigen (de), verstimmen (de), quälen (de), plagen (de), anzipfen (de), enervieren (de), irritieren (de), reizen (de), fuchsen (de)
- Greek: ενοχλώ (el) (enochló), πειράζω (el) (peirázo)
- Ancient: σκύλλω (skúllō)
- Hebrew: הֵצִיק (he) (hetzíq)
- Hindi: खीझना (khījhnā)
- Hungarian: zavar (hu), zaklat (hu)
- Icelandic: trufla (is)
- Ido: jenar (io)
- Indonesian: mengganggu (id)
- Irish: cráigh
- Italian: infastidirsi, infastidire (it), importunare (it), disturbare (it), irritare (it)
- Japanese: 煩わす (ja) (wazurawasu), 騒がす (ja) (sawagasu), 苦しめる (ja) (kurushimeru), いらいらさせる (iraira-saseru)
- Kannada: ಕಾಡು (kn) (kāḍu)
- Khmer: ធ្វើឲ្យខ្វល់ (tvəə aoy kvɑl), ឌុដាន់ (km) (du’dan)
- Latin: vexō
- Lithuanian: erzinti (lt)
- Malay: please add this translation if you can
- Malayalam: ശല്യപ്പെടുത്തുക (ml) (śalyappeṭuttuka)
- Maori: whakakūrakuraku, kaiawherangi, mukākā, whakangari, pōrahu, pōrahurahu, whakapōrearea, whakatenetene, rangirangi, hakuhaku, māreherehe, whakahārangirangi
- Middle English: anoyen, vexen, noyen
- Occitan: molestar (oc)
- Old English: dreċċan, gremman
- Polish: irytować (pl)
- Portuguese: irritar (pt)
- Quechua: phiñay
- Romanian: enerva (ro), irita (ro), deranja (ro), sâcâi (ro)
- Russian: надоеда́ть (ru) impf (nadojedátʹ), надое́сть (ru) pf (nadojéstʹ), докуча́ть (ru) impf (dokučátʹ), досажда́ть (ru) impf (dosaždátʹ), раздража́ть (ru) impf (razdražátʹ), беспоко́ить (ru) impf (bespokóitʹ)
- Sanskrit: बाधति (bādhati)
- Scottish Gaelic: buair, cuir dragh air
- Spanish: molestar (es), agobiar (es), jorobar (es)
- Swedish: irritera (sv), störa (sv), reta (sv)
- Tagalog: galitin
- Thai: รำคาญ (th) (ram-kaan)
- Uzbek: jonga tegmoq
- Vietnamese: làm phiền (vi), quấy rầy (vi)
- Welsh: plagio (cy)
to do something to upset or anger someone
- Bengali: জ্বালাতন করা (bn) (jalaton kora)
- Bulgarian: досаждам (bg) (dosaždam), закачам (bg) (zakačam)
- Chichonyi-Chidzihana-Chikauma: chokozaa, yuga
- Esperanto: ĝeni (eo), kolerigi, ĉagreni (eo)
- Finnish: ärsyttää (fi)
- Galician: anoxar, aborrecer (gl)
- Georgian: წყენინება (c̣q̇enineba), გაღიზიანება (gaɣizianeba), შეწუხება (šec̣uxeba)
- German: ärgern (de), stören (de), nerven (de), auf die Nerven gehen (de), irritieren (de), reizen (de)
- Greek: νευριάζω (el) (nevriázo)
- Hungarian: bosszant (hu), idegesít (hu)
- Italian: irritare (it), seccare (it), rompere (it)
- Latin: vexō
- Lithuanian: dirginti
- Middle English: anoyen, noyen
- Old English: dreċċan, gremman
- Portuguese: aborrecer (pt)
- Scottish Gaelic: buair, cuir dragh air
- Tagalog: galitin
- Ukrainian: дратувати (dratuvaty)
From Middle English anoy, from Old French enui. Doublet of ennui.
annoy (plural annoys)
- (literary, archaic) A feeling of discomfort or vexation caused by what one dislikes.
1606 (date written), [Francis Beaumont; John Fletcher], The Woman Hater. […], London: […] [Robert Raworth], and are to be sold by John Hodgets […], published 1607, →OCLC, Act III, scene i:
VVe that ſuffer long anoy / Are contented vvith a thought / Through an idle fancie vvrought / O let my ioyes have ſome abiding.
1870, Ralph Waldo Emerson, “Success”, in Society and Solitude. Twelve Chapters, Boston, Mass.: Fields, Osgood, & Co., →OCLC, page 272:
[I]f she says he was defeated, why he had better, a great deal, have been defeated, than give her a moment's annoy.
- (literary, archaic) That which causes such a feeling.
c. 1593 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Tragedy of Richard the Third: […]”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act IV, scene ii]:
Sleepe in Peace, and wake in Ioy, / Good Angels guard thee from the Boares annoy […]
1872, Robert Browning, Fifine at the Fair, London: Smith, Elder and Co., […], →OCLC, stanza 5, page 4:
The home far and away, the distance where lives joy, / The cure, at once and ever, of world and world's annoy; […]
- (both senses) annoyance
that which causes such a feeling
- “annoy”, in The Century Dictionary […], New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911, →OCLC.
- “annoy”, in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: G. & C. Merriam, 1913, →OCLC.
annoy
- Alternative form of anoy
[c. 1360s (date written), Geffray Chaucer [i.e., Geoffrey Chaucer], “The Romaunt of the Rose”, in [William Thynne], editor, The Workes of Geffray Chaucer Newlye Printed, […], [London: […] Richard Grafton for] Iohn Reynes […], published 1542, →OCLC:
I merveyle me wonder faste / How ony man may lyve or laste / In such peyne and such brennyng, / […] In such annoy contynuely.
- (please add an English translation of this quotation)]