as in badgered
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Dissimilar Words
as in bothered
to thrust oneself upon (another) without invitation
one resident pestered the condo board about every little thing
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of pestered
Zack Cox, Boston Herald, 26 Mar. 2026
My own parents met coming out of a movie theater in New Britain when my less than suave Coast Guard father pestered my mother for a date.
—Jody Mamone, Hartford Courant, 11 Feb. 2026
But with a game against powerhouse Massillon on the horizon, Mike pestered coach Gerry Rardin for weeks.
—Chad Graff, New York Times, 4 Feb. 2026
Rori Harmon and Jordan Lee led a defense that persistently pestered Gators guard Liv McGill, who entered the game as the SEC's second-leading scorer, in a 6-for-16 shooting performance that included nine of Florida's 21 turnovers.
—Danny Davis, Austin American Statesman, 29 Jan. 2026
Charles, who is a big fan of the Ravens, pestered Kelce for much of that visit about the Chiefs’ 17-10 win in the AFC Championship Game in 2024 in Baltimore.
—Pete Grathoff, Kansas City Star, 23 Sep. 2025
Williams missed four games last year from a hamstring strain that pestered him throughout the season.
—Adam Grosbard, Oc Register, 5 Sep. 2025
Verb
Scheierman also hit two earlier threes, grabbed five rebounds and pestered Gilgeous-Alexander to force a third-quarter turnover to help Boston take down the defending NBA champions 119-109.
—Zack Cox, Boston Herald, 26 Mar. 2026
My own parents met coming out of a movie theater in New Britain when my less than suave Coast Guard father pestered my mother for a date.
—Jody Mamone, Hartford Courant, 11 Feb. 2026
But with a game against powerhouse Massillon on the horizon, Mike pestered coach Gerry Rardin for weeks.
—Chad Graff, New York Times, 4 Feb. 2026
Rori Harmon and Jordan Lee led a defense that persistently pestered Gators guard Liv McGill, who entered the game as the SEC's second-leading scorer, in a 6-for-16 shooting performance that included nine of Florida's 21 turnovers.
—Danny Davis, Austin American Statesman, 29 Jan. 2026
Charles, who is a big fan of the Ravens, pestered Kelce for much of that visit about the Chiefs’ 17-10 win in the AFC Championship Game in 2024 in Baltimore.
—Pete Grathoff, Kansas City Star, 23 Sep. 2025
Williams missed four games last year from a hamstring strain that pestered him throughout the season.
—Adam Grosbard, Oc Register, 5 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for pestered
Verb
-
The Vedder Cup is a tongue-in-cheek attempt to pair the Padres and Mariners as rivals despite the two teams not having much reason to get all hot and bothered about a series.—
Jeff Sanders,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
18 May 2026
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He has since been elected to the state Senate twice, in one of Iowa’s bluest areas; both times, no Republican bothered to run.—
Amy Davidson Sorkin,
New Yorker,
17 May 2026
Adjective
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Others were placed under house arrest, harassed or subject to extensive surveillance, or had their passports confiscated, according to prior NPR reporting and the findings of the United Nations and rights groups.—
Emily Feng,
NPR,
17 May 2026
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For years, Christian clergy who live and work in Jerusalem have reported being frequently spat on, harassed and even physically attacked by Israeli extremists.—
Yuliya Talmazan,
NBC news,
1 May 2026
Verb
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Elk Grove Village Mayor Craig Johnson delivered a sharp defense of data centers at a packed community meeting yesterday, responding to questions from residents worried that massive new facilities dedicated to artificial intelligence could suck up the village’s water or increase their utility bills.—
Chicago Tribune,
Chicago Tribune,
22 May 2026
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The government also worried that Mythos would use some of the limited computing power source the government also needs to operate AI tools, The Wall Street Journal reported previously.—
Sara Dorn,
Forbes.com,
22 May 2026
Verb
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Weston Richey, a 25-year-old Texan photographer with whom Kyra seemed to be perturbed, pulled her for a chat to try to figure out why she was annoyed with him.—
Anna Peele,
Vulture,
20 May 2026
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Frankly, at the end of it all, everyone had good reason to be annoyed.—
Matteo Wong,
The Atlantic,
18 May 2026
Adjective
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For the past 10 months, since a frustrated Colbert announced the cancellation of the three-decade-old talk show in July 2025, the countdown to his farewell has been looming over Colbert and the whole of the late-night genre like a guillotine with a threadbare rope.—
Kelly Lawler,
USA Today,
13 May 2026
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In Rhode Island, school speech therapist Denise Champney said she’s seen children get so frustrated with the software’s animations and spoken prompts that one punched the screen of his Chromebook.—
Tyler Kingkade,
NBC news,
12 May 2026
Adjective
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The track is bookended by audio of a woman who sells plasma to fund her shopping addiction, a parallel to Skeletrix’s depiction of his plight as a tortured artist.—
Olivier Lafontant,
Pitchfork,
15 May 2026
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While Naverrette flawlessly plays Nikki as being possessed by a sinister spirit who’s obsessed with Bear, her performance also includes tortured outbursts as the real Nikki sporadically breaks free from her subconscious to react in horror as her friend takes advantage of the situation.—
Glenn Garner,
Deadline,
15 May 2026
Adjective
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Screen time has become a default rather than an intentional choice for harried teachers and distracted students.—
Will Oremus,
The Atlantic,
16 May 2026
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Why is any of this happening in person, rather than over harried texts?—
Mia Galuppo,
HollywoodReporter,
8 Apr. 2026
Adjective
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Projects will be judged on several criteria, including the project’s creativity and the use of tested and accurate AI.—
Jared Perlo,
NBC news,
4 Sep. 2025
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Every batch of ice cream, even those with tested and confirmed recipes, requires a lot of tasting and adjusting.—
Maggie Hiufu Wong,
CNN Money,
5 Aug. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Pestered.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/pestered. Accessed 24 May. 2026.
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