pester

[ pes-ter ]
/ ˈpɛs tər /

verb (used with object)

to bother persistently with petty annoyances; trouble: Don't pester me with your trivial problems.
Obsolete. to overcrowd.

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. -er6)

OTHER WORDS FROM pester

pes·ter·er, noun pes·ter·ing·ly, adverb pes·ter·some, adjective un·pes·tered, adjective

Example sentences from the Web for pestered

British Dictionary definitions for pestered

pester
/ (ˈpɛstə) /

verb

(tr) to annoy or nag continually

Derived forms of pester

pesterer, noun pesteringly, adverb

Word Origin for pester

C16: from Old French empestrer to hobble (a horse), from Vulgar Latin impāstōriāre (unattested) to use a hobble, from pāstōria (unattested) a hobble, from Latin pāstōrius relating to a herdsman, from pastor herdsman