annoying

A1N1N1O1Y4I1N1G2
/əˈnɔɪ.ɪŋ/

adjective

Causing irritation or annoyance; troublesome; vexatious.

“Having flies in your bedroom when you're trying to sleep is really annoying.”

Similar
aggravatingaggywretcheddispleasingbothersomechagriningcruddydouchetastic
OriginEnglish annoy ← Middle English anoyen ← Old French enoiier →
CommonScrabble 12
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Meanings

adjectiveannoying (comparative more annoying, superlative most annoying)

comparative more annoying · superlative most annoying

  1. Causing irritation or annoyance; troublesome; vexatious.

    Having flies in your bedroom when you're trying to sleep is really annoying.

    Synonyms: aggravating, aggy, wretched, displeasing, bothersome, chagrining, cruddy, douchetastic

verb
  1. gerundparticiplepresentpresent participle and gerund of annoy
nounannoying (plural annoyings)

plural annoyings

  1. rareThat which annoys; an annoyance.

    […] they lose the true spirit of Christianity; and, while their heads are filled with clouds of mysticism, and the smoke of metaphysical nonsense, their hearts are filled with uncharitableness and bitter annoyings.

    1865, William Buell Sprague, Annals of the American Unitarian Pulpit

Synonyms & antonyms

adjectiveCausing irritation or annoyance; troublesome; vexatious.

Similar
aggravatingaggywretcheddispleasingbothersomechagriningcruddydouchetasticdoucheydrippygittishhoneryirksomeirritatingobnoxiouspeskyplaguytroublesometwattish

More synonyms by meaning

adjectivecausing irritation or annoyance

Similar
bothersomegallingirritatingnettlesomepeskypesteringpestiferousplaguyplagueyteasingvexatiousvexingdisagreeable

nounthe act of troubling or annoying someone

Similar
annoyanceirritationvexation
Broader
mistreatment
Also see
annoyanceannoyantbothersomebutt-munchingcruddydisagreeabledrippyfuckinggallingincommodiousirksomeirritatingirritationmeddlingnettlesomeobnoxiouspainfulpeskypesteringpestiferouspestilentialplagueyteasingvexationvexatiousvexing

Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.

Origin

  1. Proto-Indo-European*h₁én
  2. Proto-Italic*en
  3. Proto-Italic*en-
  4. Latinin-
  5. Proto-Indo-European*h₃ed-
  6. Proto-Italic*odjom
  7. Latinodium
  8. Late Latininodiāre
  9. Old Frenchenoiier
  10. Middle Englishanoyen
  11. Englishannoy
  12. Englishannoying

From annoy + -ing.

Full word history & related roots →

Translations

Arabic مُزْعِج
  • مُزْعِج (muzʕij)causing irritation or annoyance
Bulgarian досаден
  • досаден (dosaden)causing irritation or annoyance
Catalan molest, enutjós
  • molestcausing irritation or annoyance
  • enutjóscausing irritation or annoyance
  • enfadóscausing irritation or annoyance
  • fastijóscausing irritation or annoyance
Chinese Mandarin 討厭 /讨厌, 煩人 /烦人
  • 討厭 /讨厌 (tǎoyàn)causing irritation or annoyance
  • 煩人 /烦人 (fánrén)causing irritation or annoyance
Czech otravný
  • otravnýcausing irritation or annoyance
Danish irriterende
  • irriterendecausing irritation or annoyance
Dutch vervelend, irritant
  • vervelendcausing irritation or annoyance
  • irritantcausing irritation or annoyance
  • storendcausing irritation or annoyance
Esperanto agaca, ĝena
  • agacacausing irritation or annoyance
  • ĝenacausing irritation or annoyance
Finnish ärsyttävä, närkästyttävä
  • ärsyttäväcausing irritation or annoyance
  • närkästyttäväcausing irritation or annoyance
French agaçant, irritant
  • agaçantcausing irritation or annoyance
  • irritantcausing irritation or annoyance
  • énervantcausing irritation or annoyance
  • ennuyeuxcausing irritation or annoyance
  • ennuyantcausing irritation or annoyance
German ärgerlich, lästig
  • ärgerlichcausing irritation or annoyance
  • lästigcausing irritation or annoyance
Greek ενοχλητικός
  • ενοχλητικός (enochlitikós)causing irritation or annoyance
Hebrew מעצבן
  • מעצבןcausing irritation or annoyance
Hungarian bosszantó
  • bosszantócausing irritation or annoyance
Icelandic truflandi, pirrandi
  • truflandicausing irritation or annoyance
  • pirrandicausing irritation or annoyance
Irish bearránach
  • bearránachcausing irritation or annoyance
Italian pesante, seccante
  • pesantecausing irritation or annoyance
  • seccantecausing irritation or annoyance
  • scocciantecausing irritation or annoyance
  • fastidiosocausing irritation or annoyance
  • inopportunocausing irritation or annoyance
  • irritantecausing irritation or annoyance
Japanese 煩い, うるさい
  • 煩い (urusai)causing irritation or annoyance
  • うるさい (urusai)causing irritation or annoyance
  • 迷惑 (meiwaku)causing irritation or annoyance
  • 面倒 (mendō)causing irritation or annoyance
Korean 성가시다, 귀찮다
  • 성가시다 (seonggasida)causing irritation or annoyance
  • 귀찮다 (gwichanta)causing irritation or annoyance
  • 짜증스럽다 (jjajeungseureopda)causing irritation or annoyance
Latin molestus
  • molestuscausing irritation or annoyance
Norwegian irriterende, plagsom
  • irriterendecausing irritation or annoyance
  • plagsomcausing irritation or annoyance
  • brysomcausing irritation or annoyance
  • enerverendecausing irritation or annoyance
Norwegian Bokmål sjenerende
  • sjenerendecausing irritation or annoyance
Polish irytujący, drażliwy
  • irytującycausing irritation or annoyance
  • drażliwycausing irritation or annoyance
  • upierdliwycausing irritation or annoyance
Portuguese irritante, chato
  • irritantecausing irritation or annoyance
  • chatocausing irritation or annoyance
Romanian enervant, supărător
  • enervantcausing irritation or annoyance
  • supărătorcausing irritation or annoyance
Russian доса́дный, надое́дливый
  • доса́дный (dosádnyj)causing irritation or annoyance
  • надое́дливый (nadojédlivyj)causing irritation or annoyance
  • раздража́ющий (razdražájuščij)causing irritation or annoyance
  • назо́йливый (nazójlivyj)causing irritation or annoyance
  • доку́чливый (dokúčlivyj)causing irritation or annoyance
Spanish molesto, fastidioso
  • molestocausing irritation or annoyance
  • fastidiosocausing irritation or annoyance
  • molestosocausing irritation or annoyance
  • lacrosocausing irritation or annoyance
  • chinchosocausing irritation or annoyance
  • cargantecausing irritation or annoyance
  • engorrosocausing irritation or annoyance
  • enfadosocausing irritation or annoyance
Swedish irriterande, dryg
  • irriterandecausing irritation or annoyance
  • drygcausing irritation or annoyance
  • förargligcausing irritation or annoyance
Tagalog nakaaasar, nakaiinis
  • nakaaasarcausing irritation or annoyance
  • nakaiiniscausing irritation or annoyance
  • nakauuratcausing irritation or annoyance
Thai น่ารำคาญ
  • น่ารำคาญ (nâa-ram-kaan)causing irritation or annoyance
Turkish can sıkıcı, gıcık
  • can sıkıcıcausing irritation or annoyance
  • gıcıkcausing irritation or annoyance
  • sinircausing irritation or annoyance
  • kılcausing irritation or annoyance
  • sinir bozucucausing irritation or annoyance
  • sinirlendiricicausing irritation or annoyance
  • rahatsız edicicausing irritation or annoyance
Ukrainian дратівли́вий, доса́дний
  • дратівли́вий (drativlývyj)causing irritation or annoyance
  • доса́дний (dosádnyj)causing irritation or annoyance
  • набридливи́й (nabrydlyvýj)causing irritation or annoyance
Vietnamese phiền, phiền phức
  • phiềncausing irritation or annoyance
  • phiền phứccausing irritation or annoyance
  • phiền toáicausing irritation or annoyance
Welsh plagus
  • plaguscausing irritation or annoyance

Rhymes & wordplay

Rhymes with annoying

cloying
All rhymes →

Anagrams

Yongnianyangonin
Cite this entry
APA

annoying. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/annoying

MLA

“annoying.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/annoying. Accessed November 4, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “annoying,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/annoying.

Source: annoying on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.