harass

Definition from Wiktionary, a free dictionary

Contents 1 English 1.1 Etymology 1.2 Pronunciation 1.3 Verb 1.3.1 Synonyms 1.3.2 Derived terms 1.3.3 Translations 1.3.4 External links

[edit] English

[edit] Etymology

< Old French harasser (“‘to tire out, to vex’”). Origin uncertain; cf. Old French harier (“‘harry’”); see harry; cf. Old French, harace (“‘a basket made of cords’”), harace, harasse (“‘a very heavy and large shield; or harer to set (a dog) on’”).

[edit] Pronunciation

• (GenAm) enPR: hərăsʹ, IPA: /həˈræs/, SAMPA: /h@"r{s/

  Rhymes: -æs

• (RP) enPR: hăʹrəs, IPA: /ˈhærəs/, SAMPA: /"h{r@s/

  Rhymes: -ærəs

[edit] Verb

to harass (third-person singular simple present harasses, present participle harassing, simple past and past participle harassed)

1. To fatigue or to tire with repeated and exhausting efforts
2. To annoy endlessly or systematically; to molest
3. to put excessive burdens upon; to subject to anxieties
   • Nazis and their sympathizers harassed Jews and Gypsies in the early 1940s.

[edit] Synonyms

• hassle
• harry
• chivy or chivvy
• chevy or chevvy
• beset
• plague
• molest
• provoke

[edit] Derived terms

• harasser
• harassment

[edit] Translations

[edit] External links

• harass in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam, 1913
• harass in The Century Dictionary, The Century Co., New York, 1911