Nuisance NU'ISANCE, n. [L. to annoy. Blackstone writes nusance, and it is desirable that his example may be followed.]
1. That which annoys or gives trouble and vexation; that which is offensive or noxious. A liar is a nusance to society.
2. In law, that which incommodes or annoys; something that produces inconvenience or damage. Nusances are public or private; public, when they annoy citizens in general, as obstructions of the highway; private, when they affect individuals only, as when one man erects a house so near his neighbor's as to throw the water off the roof upon his neighbor's land or house, or to intercept the light that his neighbor before enjoyed.

nuisance n 1: (law) a broad legal concept including anything that disturbs the reasonable use of your property or endangers life and health or is offensive 2: a bothersome annoying person; "that kid is a terrible pain" [syn: pain, pain in the neck, nuisance]

nuisance c.1400, "injury, hurt, harm," from Anglo-Fr. nusaunce, from O.Fr. nuisance, from stem of nuire "to harm," from L. nocere "to hurt." Sense softened to "annoyance" by 19c.

nuisance ˈnju:sns See: PUBLIC NUISANCE.

nuisance
n.
1 a person, thing, or circumstance causing trouble or annoyance.
2 anything harmful or offensive to the community or a member of it and for which a legal remedy exists.
Phrases and idioms:
nuisance value an advantage resulting from the capacity to harass or frustrate.
Etymology: ME f. OF, = hurt, f. nuire nuis- f. L nocere to hurt

nuisance (nuisances) If you say that someone or something is a nuisance, you mean that they annoy you or cause you a lot of problems. He could be a bit of a nuisance when he was drunk... Sorry to be a nuisance. = pain N-COUNT: usu sing • If someone makes a nuisance of themselves, they behave in a way that annoys other people. He spent three days making an absolute nuisance of himself. PHRASE: V and N inflect

nuisance ˈnju:sns n. 1 a person, thing, or circumstance causing trouble or annoyance. 2 anything harmful or offensive to the community or a member of it and for which a legal remedy exists. ønuisance value an advantage resulting from the capacity to harass or frustrate. [ME f. OF, = hurt, f. nuire nuis- f. L nocere to hurt]

Nuisance \Nui"sance\, n. [OE. noisance, OF. noisance, nuisance, fr. L. nocentia guilt, fr. nocere to hurt, harm; akin to necare to kill. Cf Necromancy, Nocent, Noxious, Pernicious.] That which annoys or gives trouble and vexation; that which is offensive or noxious. Note: Nuisances are public when they annoy citizens in general; private, when they affect individuals only.

nuisance n. Annoyance, plague, bane, infliction, pest, bore.

nuisance ˈnju:sns n. 1 annoyance, inconvenience, trial, ordeal, burden, irritation, irritant, thorn in the flesh or side, difficulty, bother, US bur under the saddle, Colloq pain (in the neck or rear), headache, hassle, Slang US and Canadian pain in the butt, Taboo slang pain in the Brit arse, or US ass: Having to paint the room again was a terrible nuisance. 2 bore, pest, nag, tease, tormentor or tormenter: James has made a nuisance of himself by telephoning every fifteen minutes.

55 Moby Thesaurus words for "nuisance": aggravation, annoyance, ass, bad news, bedevilment, besetment, bore, bother, botheration, bothersomeness, burden, buttonholer, crashing bore, devilment, difficulty, dogging, downer, drag, drip, dryasdust, dusty, exasperation, flat tire, frightful bore, harassment, harrying, hassle, headache, hounding, humdrum, inconvenience, irritant, irritation, molestation, nag, ordeal, persecution, pest, pester, pesterer, pill, plague, problem, proser, tease, tormenter, tormentor, trial, trouble, twaddler, vexation, vexatiousness, wet blanket, worriment, worry

look up a word or phrase

Possible images of nuisance