hassle
/ˈhas(ə)l
/informal
noun [mass noun]
1Irritating inconvenience: the hassle of child care [count noun]: travelling can be a hassle...
- ‘It's caused a lot of inconvenience and hassle but it's not going to affect our business,’ he said.
- I've talked one-on-one with quite a few customers, so I know this caused some of you considerable hassle and inconvenience.
- Couples can resolve the problems of divorcing without becoming involved in the stress, hassle and financial cost of a court settlement.
Synonyms
inconvenience, bother, nuisance, problem, struggle, difficulty, annoyance, irritation, thorn in one's flesh/side, bane of one's life;
trials and tribulations, fuss, trouble
informal aggravation, aggro, stress, headache, pain, pain in the neck/backside
North American informal pain in the butt
British vulgar slang pain in the arse
1.1Deliberate harassment: when I told them I would not work on Sundays I got hassle...
- We have to pick our way to sanity through a cacophony of pressure and hassle which are not the product of any one moment in time but of the times in which we live.
- But misunderstandings and mistrust do exist, and some have resulted in hassle and harassment.
- After it was discovered that I was a Christian, I was subjected to hassle and harassment on a daily basis and management would not do anything about it.
1.2 [count noun] North American A disagreement or quarrel: an election-year hassle with farmers
Synonyms
disagreement, quarrel, argument, dispute, altercation, squabble, wrangle, shouting match, difference of opinion, contretemps, falling-out, war of words;
fight, tussle, struggle, fracas, free-for-all, brawl;
Irish, North American, & Australian donnybrook
informal tiff, set-to, run-in, spat, scrap, dust-up
British informal row, barney, slanging match, ding-dong, bust-up, bit of argy-bargy, ruck
Scottish informal rammy
North American informal rhubarb
archaic broil, miff
Scottish archaic threap, collieshangie
verb [with object]
Harass; pester: you want to sit and relax and not get hassled...
- Sure they were bothered by the state police and hassled by the communist militia, but that just spiced up the spirit of adventure.
- My dad is hassling me because I never return his calls.
- I'll just keep calling you and hassling you until you do…
Synonyms
harass, pester, nag, go on at, keep on at, keep after, badger, hound, harry, harp on at, chivvy, trouble, bother, worry, torment, annoy, plague, bedevil, persecute
informal bug, give someone a hard time, get in someone's hair, get on someone's case, get on someone's back, breathe down someone's neck
Northern English mither
North American informal devil, ride
Australian/New Zealand informal heavy
rare discommode
harassed, stressed, stressed out, harried, frayed, hard-pressed, agitated, flustered, beleaguered, hounded, plagued, bothered, troubled, distressed, beset, hag-ridden, tormented;
under stress, under pressure, at the end of one's tether, with one's back up against the wall;
North American at the end of one's rope
informal up against it, in a state, hot and bothered
British informal under the cosh, stressy
Origin
Late 19th century (originally dialect in the sense 'hack or saw at'): of unknown origin, perhaps a blend of haggle and tussle.
This was originally a dialect word in the sense ‘hack or saw at’. The origin is unknown but it may be a blend of haggle (LME from an Old Norse word for ‘hack, mangle’) and tussle (LME, probably the same word as tousle, of Germanic origin).