give someone grief

present singular third person gives someone grief · participle present giving someone grief · past gave someone grief · participle past given someone grief

1. To cause pain to someone.

   Her elbow has been giving her grief.

   Synonyms: hurt, trouble, ache, afflict, aggrieve, agonize, anguish, dere

2. idiomaticTo hassle or abuse someone.

   Fred was giving me grief over the money I owed him.

   1 more example

   Some of his colleagues have "given him a bit of grief" for leaving his house, but Haines is quick to counter that he's following Government guidelines while out and about.

   2020 May 20, Andrew Haines talks to Stefanie Foster, “Repurpose rail for the 2020s”, in Rail, page 28

   Synonyms: bother, harass, pester, trouble, badger, bait, bedevil, beleaguer