pester

[pes-ter] / ˈpɛs tər /

VERB

bother, harass

Synonyms

STRONGEST

annoy badger bedevil hassle hector hound irk nag tease torment

STRONG

beleaguer bug disturb dog fret harry importune insist nudge plague provoke remind ride tantalize worry

WEAK

be at drive crazy drive up the wall get at get in one's hair get on one's nerves get to mess with pick at work on

Antonyms

STRONGEST

delight make happy please

STRONG

aid appease assist calm comfort forget help pacify reassure soothe

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.

Now Spirit is gone, robbing us all of the airline likeliest to pester United, Delta, and American into lowering their prices more quickly once fuel prices go down.

From Slate • May 12, 2026

Ham-handed police officers pester Janey for details: Why did she touch Samantha’s dress?

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 13, 2026

It was to ensure he was comfortable with the task required to impress NFL teams that poke, prod and pester players during the evaluation process.

From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 26, 2025

Mark says: "My friend Dougie's mum, a lovely lady called Margaret, ran the catering and we would pester her for pancakes."

From BBC • Dec. 22, 2023

We continued to pester them, and finally Professor Matthews, who was a lawyer, said that it had been a privileged conversation.

From "Long Walk to Freedom" by Nelson Mandela

Vocabulary lists containing pester

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