- present participle of bully.
bullying
Americannoun
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of bullying
First recorded in 1675–85; bully 1 ( def. ) + -ing 1 ( def. )
Explanation
Bullying is the act of intimidating someone else. Threatening to beat up your little brother if he doesn't clean your room for you is most certainly an act of bullying. You may have heard of the word bully, which is a person, often young, who harasses others. A schoolyard bully might call you names, steal your lunch money, and generally make your life miserable. Bullying is the act of being a bully. Believe it or not, bullying can be serious business with grave consequences. There are even laws that require schools to take action against bullying.
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.
They will also be held directly responsible for protecting under-18s from pornography, online bullying, content that glorifies crime, and content that encourages eating disorders.
From Barron's ● Oct. 15, 2026
Posting on Facebook, Stevenson said her illness had affected her concentration, and said she had been subjected to "misogynistic bullying" following the incident.
From BBC ● Sep. 25, 2026
Thompson has in recent years, also been more outspoken about the childhood bullying he said he endured because of his distinctive fiery red hair.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 19, 2026
Australia implemented legislation barring children from social media platforms in December, part of a world-first crackdown designed to protect children from online bullying and "predatory algorithms".
From Barron's ● Sep. 7, 2026
His mother couldn’t or wouldn’t do much about the bullying, and Frank responded by staying in the house as much as possible.
From "Bad Boy" by Walter Dean Myers
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