"annoying" in seven languages
Meaningannoying
Spanish
/moˈlesto/
learned
Molestar is 'to bother', never English 'molest'.
French
/enɛʁvɑ̃/
other source · énerver ← Latin ĒNERVĀRE 'to cut the sinews, weaken'
Agaçant is a common synonym.
Italian
/fastiˈdjoso/
other source · Latin FASTĪDIŌSUM 'squeamish, disdainful' (learned)
Dare fastidio is 'to bother': mi dà fastidio.
Portuguese
/ˈʃatu/
other source · Vulgar Latin *PLATTUM 'flat' (from Greek platýs)
Literally 'flat', hence 'dull', then 'annoying'; PL- became ch- as in PLĒNUM → cheio.
Romanian
/enerˈvant/
other source · French énervant
Catalan
/muˈlɛst/
learned
English
/əˈnɔɪɪŋ/
other source · Old French anoier ← Latin IN ODIŌ 'in hatred'
Annoy is the same word as French ennuyer, which now means 'to bore'.
The Latin ancestor
MOLESTUM‘troublesome, burdensome’
All six sisters descend from it, unless marked otherwise below.
The story
Three unrelated words, and two traps: Spanish molestar only means 'to bother', and French ennuyer, the twin of English annoy, means 'to bore'.
English relatives: molest (with a much darker meaning)
Learn it
In a sentence
- esEste ruido es muy molesto.
- frCe bruit est vraiment énervant.
- itQuesto rumore è davvero fastidioso.
- ptEsse barulho é muito chato.
- roZgomotul ăsta e foarte enervant.
- caAquest soroll és molt molest.
- enThis noise is really annoying.
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