molest

UK:*UK and possibly other pronunciationsUK and possibly other pronunciations/məˈlɛst/US:USA pronunciation: IPA and respellingUSA pronunciation: IPA/məˈlɛst/ ,USA pronunciation: respelling(mə lest)


WordReference Random House Learner's Dictionary of American English © 2025
mo•lest /məˈlɛst/USA pronunciation   v. [+ object]
  1. to bother or annoy:The bully always molested him when he walked home from school.
  2. to make indecent sexual advances to:molesting children in a day-care center.
mo•les•ta•tion /ˌmoʊlɛˈsteɪʃən, ˌmɑlɛ-/USA pronunciation  n. [uncountable]child molestation.
mo•lest•er, n. [countable]mandatory prison for child molesters.

WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2025
mo•lest  (mə lest),USA pronunciation v.t. 
  1. to bother, interfere with, or annoy.
  2. to make indecent sexual advances to.
  3. to assault sexually.
  • Latin molestāre to irk, derivative of molestus irksome; compare mōlēs mass, burden, trouble
  • 1325–75; Middle English molesten
mo•les•ta•tion  (mō′le stāshən, mol′e-),USA pronunciation n.  mo•lester, n. 
mo•lestful, adj. 
    • 1.See corresponding entry in Unabridged harass, harry, trouble, plague, hector, torment. See attack. 

molest, +v.t. 
    • to assault sexually.

Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::
molest / məˈlɛst/ (transitive)
  1. to disturb or annoy by malevolent interference
  2. to accost or attack, esp with the intention of assaulting sexually
Etymology: 14th Century: from Latin molestāre to annoy, from molestus troublesome, from mōlēs massmolestation / ˌməʊlɛˈsteɪʃən/moˈlester
'molest' also found in these entries (note: many are not synonyms or translations):

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