Meanings
bullying1
nounbullying (countable and uncountable, plural bullyings)
plural bullyings
- countableuncountableAn act of intimidating a person to do something, especially such repeated coercion.
[Greenland's current Prime Minister Múte] Egede has insisted that Greenland is not for sale and he framed the polling partly as a referendum on Trump's seemingly bellicose bullying, saying the election was a "fateful choice."
2025 March 13, Scott Neuman, Willem Marx, “https://www.npr.org/2025/03/13/nx-s1-5325949/greenland-elections-trump-independence”, in NPR - countableuncountablePersistent acts intended to make life unpleasant for another person.
Bullying is a punishable offense in schools.
bullying2
verb
- gerundparticiplepresentpresent participle and gerund of bully
Synonyms & antonyms
adjectivenoisily domineering; tending to browbeat others
Similar
nounthe act of intimidating a weaker person to make them do something
Similar
Broader
Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.
Origin
bullying · verb
See the etymology of the corresponding lemma form.
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Arabic إِرْهَاب, تَنَمُّر
- إِرْهَاب (ʔirhāb)act of intimidating a person
- تَنَمُّر (tanammur)act of intimidating a person
- تَنَمُّر (tanammur)persistent acts intended to make life unpleasant
Bulgarian тормо́з, поти́скане
- тормо́з (tormóz)persistent acts intended to make life unpleasant
- поти́скане (potískane)persistent acts intended to make life unpleasant
Chinese Mandarin 欺負 /欺负, 恃強欺弱 /恃强欺弱
- 欺負 /欺负persistent acts intended to make life unpleasant
- 恃強欺弱 /恃强欺弱persistent acts intended to make life unpleasant
- 恃強凌弱 (shìqiánglíngruò)persistent acts intended to make life unpleasant
- 欺凌 (qīlíng)persistent acts intended to make life unpleasant
- 霸凌 (bàlíng)persistent acts intended to make life unpleasant
Czech šikana, šikanování
- šikanaact of intimidating a person
- šikanováníact of intimidating a person
- šikanapersistent acts intended to make life unpleasant
- šikanovánípersistent acts intended to make life unpleasant
Danish mobning
- mobningpersistent acts intended to make life unpleasant
Esperanto ĉikanado, ĉikanado
- ĉikanadoact of intimidating a person
- ĉikanadopersistent acts intended to make life unpleasant
Finnish kiusaaminen, pakottaminen
- kiusaaminenact of intimidating a person
- pakottaminenact of intimidating a person
- kiusaaminenpersistent acts intended to make life unpleasant
French harcèlement, harcèlement
- harcèlementact of intimidating a person
- harcèlementpersistent acts intended to make life unpleasant
German Schikanieren, Schikane
- Schikanierenact of intimidating a person
- Schikaneact of intimidating a person
- Drangsalierenact of intimidating a person
- Mobbingpersistent acts intended to make life unpleasant
- Mobbenpersistent acts intended to make life unpleasant
- Piesackenpersistent acts intended to make life unpleasant
- Piesackereipersistent acts intended to make life unpleasant
- Drangsalierenpersistent acts intended to make life unpleasant
- Tyrannisierenpersistent acts intended to make life unpleasant
Greek νταηλίκι
- νταηλίκι (ntaïlíki)act of intimidating a person
Hindi दादागिरी
- दादागिरी (dādāgirī)persistent acts intended to make life unpleasant
Icelandic einelti
- eineltipersistent acts intended to make life unpleasant
Irish bulaíocht, bulaíocht
- bulaíochtact of intimidating a person
- bulaíochtpersistent acts intended to make life unpleasant
Italian bullismo
- bullismoact of intimidating a person
Japanese 嫌がらせ, いじめ
- 嫌がらせ (iyagarase)act of intimidating a person
- いじめ (ijime)persistent acts intended to make life unpleasant
- 嫌がらせ (iyagarase)persistent acts intended to make life unpleasant
Korean 괴롭힘, 핍박
- 괴롭힘 (goerophim)act of intimidating a person
- 핍박 (pipbak)act of intimidating a person
- 괴롭힘 (goerophim)persistent acts intended to make life unpleasant
- 이지메 (ijime)persistent acts intended to make life unpleasant
Latvian ņirgāšanās
- ņirgāšanāspersistent acts intended to make life unpleasant
Lithuanian patyčios
- patyčiospersistent acts intended to make life unpleasant
Polish znęcanie się, bullying
- znęcanie sięact of intimidating a person
- bullyingpersistent acts intended to make life unpleasant
- znęcanie siępersistent acts intended to make life unpleasant
Portuguese bullying, vexação
- bullyingact of intimidating a person
- vexaçãoact of intimidating a person
- assédioact of intimidating a person
- abusoact of intimidating a person
- intimidaçãoact of intimidating a person
- bullyingpersistent acts intended to make life unpleasant
Russian запу́гивание, тра́вля
- запу́гивание (zapúgivanije)act of intimidating a person
- тра́вля (trávlja)act of intimidating a person
- задира́ние (zadiránije)act of intimidating a person
- бу́ллинг (búlling)act of intimidating a person
- издева́тельства (izdevátelʹstva)persistent acts intended to make life unpleasant
- дедовщи́на (dedovščína)persistent acts intended to make life unpleasant
- задира́ние (zadiránije)persistent acts intended to make life unpleasant
- тра́вля (trávlja)persistent acts intended to make life unpleasant
- бу́ллинг (búlling)persistent acts intended to make life unpleasant
Scottish Gaelic burraidheachd, burraidheachd
- burraidheachdact of intimidating a person
- burraidheachdpersistent acts intended to make life unpleasant
Slovak šikanovanie, šikanovanie
- šikanovanieact of intimidating a person
- šikanovaniepersistent acts intended to make life unpleasant
Spanish acoso, bullying
- acosoact of intimidating a person
- bullyingact of intimidating a person
- búliinact of intimidating a person
- vejaciónact of intimidating a person
- ultrajeact of intimidating a person
- hostigamientoact of intimidating a person
- matonajeact of intimidating a person
- matonismoact of intimidating a person
- buleoact of intimidating a person
- bullying m búliinpersistent acts intended to make life unpleasant
- mobbing m mobinpersistent acts intended to make life unpleasant
- buleopersistent acts intended to make life unpleasant
Swedish mobbning
- mobbningpersistent acts intended to make life unpleasant
Turkish zorbalık
- zorbalıkpersistent acts intended to make life unpleasant
Ukrainian знуща́ння, цькува́ння
- знуща́ння (znuščánnja)act of intimidating a person
- цькува́ння (cʹkuvánnja)act of intimidating a person
- бу́лінг (búlinh)act of intimidating a person
- знуща́ння (znuščánnja)persistent acts intended to make life unpleasant
- цькува́ння (cʹkuvánnja)persistent acts intended to make life unpleasant
- бу́лінг (búlinh)persistent acts intended to make life unpleasant
Urdu دَھونْس
- دَھونْس (dhauns)act of intimidating a person
Vietnamese bắt nạt, ăn hiếp
- bắt nạtact of intimidating a person
- ăn hiếpact of intimidating a person
Cite this entry
APA
bullying. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/bullying
MLA
“bullying.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/bullying. Accessed November 4, 2026.
Chicago
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “bullying,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/bullying.
Source: bullying on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.