pester
Americanverb (used with object)
verb
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
has pesteredperfect 3rd person singular
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have pesteredperfect
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is pesteringprogressive 3rd person singular
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have been pesteringperfect progressive
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am pesteringprogressive 1st person singular
-
are pesteringprogressive
-
pesteringparticiple
-
pesterssingular 3rd person
-
has been pesteringperfect progressive 3rd person singular
Past
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had pesteredperfect
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was pesteringprogressive singular
-
were pesteringprogressive plural
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had been pesteringperfect progressive
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pesteredparticiple
-
pesteredsimple
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.
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
Children would build grottos from the shells and pester passers-by for pennies for their efforts, with cries of "Pray remember the grotto!"
From Salon • Jan. 6, 2025
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
“You know what they say about love,” Mom said sagely, “the more you pester someone the more it means you love them.”
From "Dead End in Norvelt" by Jack Gantos
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.
