Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

bother

/ˈbɔðə(ɹ)/

Word Rarity Uncommon

Frequency: 4.39 in modern English

Syllables: both-er
IPA: /ˈbɔðə(ɹ)/

11

Scrabble Score

6

Letters

2

Syllables

6

Unique Chars

Meaning

verb

To annoy, to disturb, to irritate; to be troublesome to, to make trouble for.

Transitive verb

verb

To annoy, to disturb, to irritate; to be troublesome to, to make trouble for.

Transitive verb

verb

To feel care or concern; to burden or inconvenience oneself out of concern.

Intransitive verb

verb

To take the trouble, to trouble oneself (to do something).

Intransitive verb

verb

To take the trouble, to trouble oneself (to do something).

Intransitive verb

noun

Countable; Uncountable

noun

Trouble, inconvenience.

Countable; Uncountable

intj

A mild expression of annoyance.

Dated

Example Sentences

"Would it bother you if I smoked?"
"I never bother about such trivialities."
"I wouldn't bother with an umbrella if I were you."
"To expand, without bothering about it—without shiftless timidity on one side, or loquacious eagerness on the other—to the full compass of what he would have called a "pleasant" experience, was Newman's most definite programme of life."
"Why do I even bother to try?"
"You didn’t even bother to close the door."

Etymology

Borrowed from Scots bauther, bather (“to bother”). Origin unknown. Perhaps related to Scots pother (“to make a stir or commotion, bustle”), also of unknown origin. Compare English pother (“to poke, prod”), variant of potter (“to poke”). More at potter. Perhaps related to Irish bodhaire (“noise”), Irish bodhraim (“to deafen, annoy”).

Regional Pronunciation

American English: /ˈbɔðə(ɹ)/
British English: /ˈbɒðə(ɹ)/

Usage

Inflected Forms

bothers (present, singular) bothering (participle, present) bothered (participle, past) bothered (past) bothers (plural) bother! (canonical)

Derived Forms

bebother botherance botheration bothered botherer botherless botherment bothersome

Phrases

be bothered bother one's arse father-bother merger not a bother on someone spot of bother

Synonyms

annoy disturb inconvenience irritate put out vex aggravate nettle rankle ruffle sting burn someone's ass

Rhymes With

father strother moth-er pother

Questions

How do you pronounce bother?: The recorded pronunciation is /ˈbɔðə(ɹ)/.
What does bother mean?: To annoy, to disturb, to irritate; to be troublesome to, to make trouble for.
Where does bother come from?: Borrowed from Scots bauther, bather (“to bother”). Origin unknown. Perhaps related to Scots pother (“to make a stir or commotion, bustle”), also of unknown origin. Compare English pother (“to poke, prod”), variant of potter (“to poke”). More at potter. Perhaps related to Irish bodhaire (“noise”), Irish bodhraim (“to deafen, annoy”).

How to pronounce bother

Open the pronunciation page — Open the Speakur entry for “bother”.
Read the phonetic spelling — Read the IPA spelling (/ˈbɔðə(ɹ)/) so you know which sounds to aim for.
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