frustrate
Americanverb (used with object)
-
to make (plans, efforts, etc.) worthless or of no avail; defeat; nullify.
The student's indifference frustrated the teacher's efforts to help him.
- Synonyms:
- circumvent, foil, balk
-
to disappoint or thwart (a person).
a talented woman whom life had frustrated.
verb (used without object)
adjective
verb
-
to hinder or prevent (the efforts, plans, or desires) of; thwart
-
to upset, agitate, or tire
her constant complaints began to frustrate him
adjective
Synonym Usage
See thwart.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
have frustratedperfect
-
has frustratedperfect 3rd person singular
-
is frustratingprogressive 3rd person singular
-
has been frustratingperfect progressive 3rd person singular
-
have been frustratingperfect progressive
-
am frustratingprogressive 1st person singular
-
are frustratingprogressive
-
frustratingparticiple
-
frustratessingular 3rd person
Past
-
had frustratedperfect
-
was frustratingprogressive singular
-
were frustratingprogressive plural
-
had been frustratingperfect progressive
-
frustratedsimple
-
frustratedparticiple
Future
Etymology
Origin of frustrate
First recorded in 1400–50; late Middle English, from Latin frustrātus, past participle of frustrārī, verbal derivative of frustrā “in vain”
Explanation
When you frustrate someone, you do your best to annoy, confuse, or even torment that poor person. Maybe you constantly change your mind — that's sure to frustrate anyone who tries to make plans with you. If you have ever been frustrated while writing, you may have dropped your pen — or pushed away your keyboard — and stared angrily out the window, thinking, "How will I ever do this?" Well, that pent-up doubting that has made you stop is a sure sign you are frustrated. Plans, too, can be frustrated, like the snow that frustrates our efforts to run our errands.
Vocabulary lists containing frustrate
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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 raise costs, squeeze margins, and frustrate managers.
From MarketWatch • Jun. 6, 2026
“There’s immense amount of pressure, and sometimes that pressure can get you and frustrate you in different ways,” said Clark.
From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 2, 2026
Different methodologies and outcomes for the Gauge and Big Data + Panel frustrate TV operators and confuse marketers looking to allocate spending as next month’s upfront ad sales events approach, according to Marshall.
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 14, 2026
It comes as the 55-year-old is in an ongoing legal dispute with Pride in London after he was accused of trying to frustrate the investigation into his conduct.
From BBC • Apr. 2, 2026
You would help these men to hunt me and frustrate me in my designs!
From "Dracula" by Bram Stoker
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
