nag at
verb (used with object)
1.
to annoy by persistent faultfinding, complaints, or demands.
2.
to keep in a state of troubled awareness or anxiety, as a recurrent pain or problem: She had certain misgivings that nagged her.
verb (used without object)
3.
to find fault or complain in an irritating, wearisome, or relentless manner (often followed by at ): If they start nagging at each other, I'm going home.
4.
to cause pain, discomfort, distress, depression, etc. (often followed by at ): This headache has been nagging at me all day.
Origin:
1815–25; < Old Norse nagga to rub, grumble, quarrel; akin to Middle Low German naggen to irritate. See gnaw
1815–25; < Old Norse nagga to rub, grumble, quarrel; akin to Middle Low German naggen to irritate. See gnaw
Related forms
un·nagged, adjective
Synonyms
1. pester, harass, hector, irritate, vex.
1. pester, harass, hector, irritate, vex.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
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Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
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|
Link To nag at
00:10
Nag at
is always a great word to know.
So is bezoar. Does it mean:
| a printed punctuation mark (‽), available only in some typefaces, designed to combine the question mark (?) and the exclamation point (!), indicating a mixture of query and interjection, as after a rhetorical question. |
| a calculus or concretion found in the stomach or intestines of certain animals, esp. ruminants, formerly reputed to be an effective remedy for poison. |
Collins
World English Dictionary
nag1 (næɡ) ![[Click for IPA pronunciation guide]](http://static.sfdict.com/dictstatic/g/d/dictionary_questionbutton_default.gif) | |
| —vb (when intr, | |
| 1. | to scold or annoy constantly |
| 2. | to be a constant source of discomfort or worry (to): toothache nagged him all day |
| —n | |
| 3. | a person, esp a woman, who nags |
| [C19: of Scandinavian origin; compare Swedish nagga to | |
| 'nagger1 | |
| —n | |
| 'naggingly1 | |
| —adv | |
| nag2 (næɡ) | |
| —n | |
| 1. | derogatory often a horse |
| 2. | a small riding horse |
| [C14: of Germanic origin; related to | |
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
Cite This Source
Etymonline
Word Origin & History
nag
"annoy by scolding," 1828, originally a dialectal word, probably ultimately from a Scand. source (cf. O.N. gnaga "to complain," lit. "to bite, gnaw," dial. Swed. and Norw. nagga "to gnaw") related to O.E. gnagan "to gnaw" (see gnaw).
nag
"old horse," c.1400, nagge "small riding horse," of unknown origin, perhaps related to Du. negge, neg (but these are more recent than the Eng. word). Term of abuse is a transferred sense, first recorded 1598.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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Slang Dictionary
nag definition
|
Dictionary of American Slang and Colloquial Expressions by Richard A. Spears.Fourth Edition.
Copyright 2007. Published by McGraw Hill.
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Copyright 2007. Published by McGraw Hill.
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American Heritage
Abbreviations & Acronyms
| NAG N-acetylglutamate |
The American Heritage® Abbreviations Dictionary, Third Edition
Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Nearby Words
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