pester
Americanverb (used with object)
-
pesters,
present (3rd person singular)
-
pestered,
past participle, past
-
pestering
present participle
verb
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
pestersimple
-
pesterssimple
-
have pesteredperfect
-
has pesteredperfect
-
am pesteringprogressive
-
are pesteringprogressive
-
is pesteringprogressive
-
have been pesteringperfect progressive
-
has been pesteringperfect progressive
Past
-
pesteredsimple
-
had pesteredperfect
-
was pesteringprogressive
-
were pesteringprogressive
-
had been pesteringperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of pester
1530–40; perhaps aphetic variant of empester, impester to tangle, encumber (though pester is found earlier than these 2 words) < Middle French empestrer to hobble, entangle < Vulgar Latin *impāstōriāre to hobble, equivalent to im- im- 1 + pāstōri ( a ) a hobble, noun use of Latin pāstōrius of a herdsman or shepherd + -āre infinitive suffix ( see pastor); aphetic form apparently reinforced by pest ( cf. -er 6)
Explanation
To pester someone is to annoyingly nag them about something. Pestering is repetitive and bothersome. When a child asks a parent something over and over again — like "Can I have candy? Please? Can I have candy now?" — that's an example of pestering. Parents also pester kids when they say "Clean your room" or "Take out the garbage" over and over. Pestering is like requesting, but doing it many times, usually to the point of annoyance. No one likes to be pestered.
Vocabulary lists containing pester
"Macbeth" Vocabulary from Act V
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Stargirl
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Crash
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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.
See Examples For:
Brush clearance is required nationwide, but local fire departments rarely pester property owners.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 30, 2026
There’s a store chain called Five Below that is designed to maximize pester power.
From Barron's ● Jun. 5, 2026
Ham-handed police officers pester Janey for details: Why did she touch Samantha’s dress?
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 13, 2026
But every so often there’s one person who forgets to Venmo or Zelle or who I have to pester about sending their share a few times.
From Slate ● Feb. 28, 2024
“He’ll see me at supper, and then he’ll pester me all night!”
From Each Little Bird That Sings by Deborah Wiles
He described Mr Amro as an "anarchist who frequently pesters IDF soldiers in Hebron".
From BBC ● Feb. 14, 2023
Now, she said, her family pesters her for festival tickets, and she is preparing to direct a new film to be shot in Saudi Arabia.
From New York Times ● Dec. 27, 2021
That is, it pesters potential customers on insurers’ behalf.
From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 14, 2021
But every time she’s over, she destroys the house and pesters me constantly and teaches my kid bad habits.
From Slate ● Nov. 24, 2020
Soojin sighs again, extra loudly, just like she does when her younger sister pesters us to play with her.
From "Amina's Voice" by Hena Khan
Snead said he pestered Berry “probably jokingly at first,” before talks became more serious before and after the NFL draft in late April.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 2, 2026
He pestered his parents and friends about the risks of AI.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 16, 2026
Surely only Williams pestered the woman about it afterwards.
From Salon ● Jan. 7, 2025
There is of course the danger that instead of being pestered for a smartphone, parents will find themselves being pestered for a piece of Barbie merchandise - which may be just as unwelcome.
From BBC ● Aug. 27, 2024
Naturally Lyra was eager to fly with him, and naturally it was forbidden; but she rode with him on the way there and pestered him with questions.
From "The Golden Compass" by Philip Pullman
Become a real nuisance and tech boosters will eventually give up, handing the future back to the pestering, teeming masses.
From Salon ● Apr. 13, 2026
The idea for Campus Guardian Angel came from Justin Marston, a British entrepreneur and Mithril co-founder, who saw videos of small Ukrainian drones pestering Russian soldiers with guns.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 5, 2026
"Every couple of days she's pestering me asking if I've looked at dresses or done anything, and I've not," McColgan revealed.
From BBC ● Jan. 24, 2026
The perception from many is that pestering issues aren’t being addressed.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 4, 2024
Most of the people in my group got it at some time or other, because mosquitoes carry it and they were always pestering us.
From "Lost Boy, Lost Girl" by John Bul Dau
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.
