molest

molest

English

Etymology

From Middle English molesten, from Old French molester, from Latin molestō (“to trouble, annoy, molest”), from molestus (“troublesome”), from moles (“a burden, difficulty, labor, trouble”); see mole.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /məˈlɛst/

  • Audio (UK)

    (file)

• Rhymes: -ɛst

Verb

molest (third-person singular simple present molests, present participle molesting, simple past and past participle molested)

1. To annoy intentionally.
2. To disturb or tamper with.
   • 1594–1597, Richard Hooker, J[ohn] S[penser], editor, Of the Lawes of Ecclesiastical Politie, […], London: […] Will[iam] Stansby [for Matthew Lownes], published 1611, OCLC 931154958, (please specify the page):

     They have molested the church with needless opposition.

   • 2020, Chief Executive in Council, “Prevention and Control of Disease (Prohibition on Group Gathering) Regulation”, in Government of Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Gazette‎, page B555:

     A person must not delay, obstruct, hinder or molest an authorized officer who is performing a function under this Regulation.

3. To sexually assault or sexually harass.

Derived terms

• molester
• molestful

 

Related terms

• molestation

 

Translations

to annoy intentionally

Bulgarian: задявам (bg) (zadjavam) Finnish: kiusata (fi), vaivata (fi), rasittaa (fi), häiritä (fi), ärsyttää (fi) French: embêter (fr) German: belästigen (de) Greek: Ancient: ὀχλέω (okhléō) Maori: turatura, mui, whakatete Persian: آزار دادن‎ (fa) (âzâr dâdan) Polish: molestować (pl) impf Portuguese: molestar (pt) Romanian: molesta (ro), necăji (ro) Russian: досажда́ть (ru) (dosaždátʹ) Spanish: molestar (es) Swedish: störa (sv) Ukrainian: чіплятися (čipljatysja), докучати (dokučaty)

to disturb or tamper with

Bulgarian: безпокоя (bg) (bezpokoja) Finnish: häiritä (fi) Polish: molestować (pl) impf Swedish: störa (sv), ofreda (sv)

to abuse

Catalan: assetjar (ca) Danish: antaste Finnish: kiusata (fi), ahdistella (fi), (sexually) käyttää hyväksi, (sexually) hyväksikäyttää French: violer (fr), abuser (fr) Greek: κακοποιώ (el) (kakopoió), ασελγώ (el) (aselgó) Maori: tūkino, takakino, whakakino, whakakinokino, turatura Norwegian: Bokmål: antaste Polish: molestować (pl) impf Portuguese: molestar (pt) Russian: совращать (ru) (sovraščatʹ), растлевать (ru) (rastlevatʹ) Spanish: acosar (es) Swedish: antasta (sv)

Further reading

• molest in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam, 1913
• molest in The Century Dictionary, New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911

Anagrams

• Motles, motels

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Indonesian

Etymology

Unadapted borrowing from Dutch molest.

Noun

molest

1. (law) damage from war.

Further reading

• “molest” in Kamus Besar Bahasa Indonesia, Jakarta: Language Development and Fostering Agency — Ministry of Education, Culture, Research, and Technology of the Republic Indonesia, 2016.