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An annoyance is someone or something that annoys—bothers or irritates.

Annoyance can also refer to the feeling of being annoyed, the act of annoying, or an instance in which someone or something is annoying.

The word implies that the resulting irritation does not rise to the level of serious harm or a major problem—even if someone or something annoys you very much.

An annoyance usually consists of some kind of irritating and unwanted behavior (especially when it’s repeated), such as someone chewing too loudly or asking you the same question over and over again. Things that are annoyances are often those that distract, interrupt, or intrude on what you’re trying to do, like a noise that keeps waking you up when you’re trying to fall asleep or a pop-up ad.

The word is sometimes used to contrast with something considered a serious problem, as in It’s no big deal—just a minor annoyance.��

Someone who is bothered in this way can be described as annoyed. Someone or something that annoys you can be described as annoying.

Example: I know all this paperwork is an annoyance, but just try to get through it as quickly as you can.

The first records of the word annoyance come from the 1300s. Its base word, annoy, comes from the Old French anoier, meaning “to tire” or “to harm.” This term derived from the Late Latin verb ���Դǻ徱�����, which means “to cause aversion” and itself comes from the Latin phrase mihi in odiō est, meaning “I dislike.” The suffix -ance is used to form nouns.

People and things that are annoyances do things that you dislike—things that bother you. Still, it’s usually something minor and not truly harmful. It’s more common to describe something as annoying than to call it an annoyance, but the word annoyance is fairly common.

What are some other forms related to annoyance?

• annoy (verb)

What are some synonyms for annoyance?

• irritation
• aggravation
• frustration
• bother (when bother is used as a noun)

What are some words that share a root or word element with annoyance?��

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• annoying
• ennui
• odium
• noisome

What are some words that often get used in discussing annoyance?

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• noise
• behavior
• brother
• sister
• neighbor
• customer

Annoyance most commonly refers to a feeling of irritation or the person or thing that’s causing this feeling. It’s always used negatively.

It's pretty obnoxious to complain to volunteers about the volume of political texts one receives. These people seem to feel that the minor annoyance of their phone buzzing every ten minutes is simply too great a price for the benefit of living in a democracy.

— Noah Tarnow (@NoahTarnow)

If there’s one thing I’ve learned in life, it’s that people can really project. You can say one thing and they’ll interpret something completely different – because of their own internalised insecurities or subconscious worries.

Sometimes their annoyance just isn’t about you.

— TONI TONE (@t0nit0ne)

I wonder if the annoyance my neighbors feel because of my overgrown lawn exceeds the annoyance I feel when they mow their lawn every weekend

— Sage Francis (@SageFrancis)

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Which of the following words is a synonym of annoyance?

A. irritation
B. frustration
C. aggravation
D. all of the above