harass

[huh-ras, har-uhs]

verb (used with object)

1. to disturb or bother persistently; torment, as with troubles or cares; pester.

   He stays up late, harassed with doubt and anxiety.

   Synonyms: annoy, hector, plague, vex, badger

2. to intimidate or coerce, as with persistent demands or threats.

   Apparently a parent has been harassing the school principal with late-night phone calls.

3. to subject to unwelcome sexual advances.

   I was harassed by my boss many years ago.

4. to trouble by repeated attacks, incursions, etc., as in war or hostilities; harry; raid.

   Synonyms: beset, besiege

harass

/ ˈhærəs, həˈræs /

verb

1. (tr) to trouble, torment, or confuse by continual persistent attacks, questions, etc

Pronunciation Note

harass , a 17th-century borrowing from French, has traditionally been pronounced in English as , with stress on the first syllable. A newer pronunciation, , has developed in North American (but not British) English and has become the more common one in the U.S., especially among younger speakers.

Other Word Forms

• harassable adjective
• harasser noun
• harassingly adverb
• harassment noun
• overharass verb (used with object)
• unharassed adjective
• harassing adjective
• harassed adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of harass¹

First recorded in 1610–20; from French, Middle French harasser “to harry, harass,” verbal derivative of harace, harache (in phrase courre a la harace “pursue”), equivalent to hare “cry used to urge dogs on” (from Frankish hara (unattested) “here, from this side”; compare Old High German hera, Middle Dutch hare ) + -asse augmentative or pejorative suffix, from Latin -ācea

Word History and Origins

Origin of harass¹

C17: from French harasser, variant of Old French harer to set a dog on, of Germanic origin; compare Old High German harēn to cry out

Synonym Study

See worry.

Example Sentences

Leavitt wouldn’t even support another woman being harassed by a man in a position of power.

Read more on Salon

Neighbors and authorities harassed her relatives for harboring her; she moved out to spare them further pain.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

Their resistance, from a population harassed, exhausted, decimated but standing tall, is unmatched.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Underground religious bodies like Zion Church, though harassed, persist with quiet resilience; officials often face a whack-a-mole reality in trying to suppress them.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Two pro-Palestinian activists found guilty of harassing a government minister have had their convictions overturned.

Read more on BBC

Related Words

• burn 
• hassle 
• heckle 
• hound 
• intimidate 
• persecute 
• pester 
• raid 
• tease 
• torment