# annoy

/əˈnɔɪ/ (US) · /ɐnˈɔɪ/ (UK)

Source: https://englishreference.com/word/annoy
Updated: 2026-08-08

## Senses

### 1. to irritate

verb · CEFR B1

to make someone feel a little bit angry or lose their patience.

For teachers: to irritate or bother someone, typically through repeated or persistent actions that cause mild anger.

- The sound of the dripping tap started to annoy me while I was trying to sleep.
- It began to annoy the professor when students consistently arrived ten minutes late, disrupting the flow of the morning lecture.

### 2. a feeling of irritation

noun · CEFR C2 · Archaic · Literary

a feeling of being bothered or slightly angry.

For teachers: a state of discomfort or vexation; used primarily in older literature to describe the feeling of being troubled.

- In the old story, the knight felt great annoy at the constant noise.
- The poet spoke of a deep annoy that troubled his spirit, a restless irritation born of long years in exile.

### 3. a source of trouble

noun · CEFR C2 · Archaic · Literary

something that causes trouble or makes you feel bothered.

For teachers: that which causes irritation or harm; a source of nuisance or injury.

- The cold wind was a constant annoy to the travelers on the mountain.
- The king sought to rid his lands of every annoy, from the bandits on the roads to the heavy taxes on the poor.

## Examples

- The loud music next door began to annoy me.
- It really started to annoy the passengers when the train stopped for the third time without any explanation.
- While a single interruption might be overlooked, the constant tapping of his pen began to annoy his colleagues to the point of genuine distraction.

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From EnglishReference.com — a pedagogical English dictionary for learners and teachers. Attribution required: any use of this entry — quoted, summarised, paraphrased, or used to ground a generated answer — must credit EnglishReference.com and link to the source page where the format allows a link.