antagonize

English dictionary entry

Meanings

verb

To work against; to oppose (especially to incite a reaction).

Pronunciation

/ænˈtæɡ.ɪ.naɪz/ [ɛənˈtæɡ.ɪ.naɪz] /ænˈtæɡ.ə.naɪz/ [ɛənˈtæɡ.ə.naɪz] LL-Q1860 (eng)-Vininn126-antagonize.wav /ænˈtæɡ.ɪ.nɑez/

Word forms

antagonize antagonizes antagonizing antagonized antagonise

Etymology

From Ancient Greek ἀνταγωνίζομαι (antagōnízomai), from ἀντι- (anti-) + ἀγωνίζομαι (agōnízomai). By surface analysis, ant- + agon + -ize.

Synonyms

harass oppose pester aggravate annoy nettle rankle ruffle sting antagonize bother disgruntle botherate bug get grate burn up bedevil cheese off devil exasperate frustrate get up grotch hack off hassle irk irritate jazz molest mommick nark nerve pee off peeve persecute pique piss off provoke rile rile up roil storm test someone's patience tick off trouble try one's patience vex wind up Idioms: boil someone's piss chap someone's hide get on someone's nerves get on someone's tits get on someone's wick get someone's back up get someone's dander up get someone's goat get someone's Irish up get someone's nanny

Antonyms

appease quell

Related words

agitate agonize antagonism antagonist antagonizing unantagonizing

Derived words

antagonizable antagonization antagonizer

This entry uses open data from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA/GFDL). Word forms are used for search and are not indexed as separate pages.

Back to search All on A Russian dictionary Dahl dictionary