pestering

noun

By · According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA) ·

"pestering" is a 9-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“pestering” has 14 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #46,105. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#46,105
frequency rank, English
4,417
“P” headwords
14
tracked misspellings
2
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - An act or instance of annoying somebody.

Corpus desk

Index EN-pestering · pestering · English

pestering · rank #46,105 · 14 variants · 2 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #46,105
  • LEN-LONG 9 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-LOW 2 pairs
  • VAR-HIGH 14 variants
  • BOOK-MID 4,417
  • PHOTO-FINISH Pilkington

Nearest frequency peer: Pilkington (+1 rank slots)

Read with this headword: Spelling guide for this pattern

Desk codes from Wiktionary headword shape, FrequencyWords rank tier, confusable-pair count, generated misspelling depth, letter-cohort book size, and photo-finish peer. Not a difficulty grade.

Rank peers near misspelling magnet “pestering”

Same rarity band: useful when a typo lands on a peer headword

corpus weight

What this shows “pestering” sits among these FrequencyWords peers; misspelling depth is tracked separately in the edit-distance chart.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).

pestering vs posturing
78% similar
pestering vs peering
78% similar

Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).

Key facts for pestering
PropertyValue
Headwordpestering
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
Letters9
Frequency rank#46,105
Misspellings tracked14
Confusable pairs2
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “pestering”

This scale runs from the tiny cluster of words that carry ordinary speech (left) to the long tail of words almost nobody reaches for (right).pesteringlands here:

#1#100#1K#10K#100K
← used constantlyrarely used →

Ticks step logarithmically, so each one marks a roughly tenfold drop in how often the word turns up. Same rarity band neighbours include “Pilkington” (#46,106), “Patil” (#46,102), “Pizzagate” (#46,108). Among 4,417 “P” headwords, “pestering” is #46,105. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 14 spelling variants around pestering, anoun. Corpus frequency is #46,105 among 4,417 “P” headwords. Dominant gloss: "An act or instance of annoying somebody.".

Our generated misspelling index lists 14 likely wrong-spelling variants for pestering, with forms such as "epstering", "pesetring", and "pesstering". Each variant is a distinct typo pattern an edit-distance generator flags, typically a doubled-consonant error, a silent-letter drop, or a vowel substitution. It also participates in 2 confusable-pair relationships, "posturing", "peering", where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

This headword's origin isn't recorded in our source data, so its spelling is easiest to reason about phoneme by phoneme, absent a documented history. The correct English form is pestering, spelled P-E-S-T-E-R-I-N-G.

Definition

  1. 1
    An act or instance of annoying somebody.

Recorded use

Wiktionary example

These source excerpts show how pestering appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.

  1. By swaying the Welsh he could at the same time deflect the pesterings he suffered from in England about the 1886 policy […]

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • epstering
  • pesetring
  • pesstering
  • pesteirng
  • pesterign
  • pesteringg
  • pesterinng
  • pesternig
  • pesterring
  • pestreing
  • pesttering
  • petsering
  • ppestering
  • psetering

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of pestering - measured in single-character edits (insert, delete, or substitute a letter). Larger bars are easier to catch; one-edit slips are the sneakiest.

epstering2pesetring2pesstering1pesteirng2pesterign2pesteringg1pesterinng1pesternig2
Edit distance from "pestering"

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA); frequency ordering uses the FrequencyWords open word-frequency list (2018 English corpus, MIT). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "pestering"?
"pestering" is spelled P-E-S-T-E-R-I-N-G.
What does "pestering" mean?
As a noun, "pestering" means: An act or instance of annoying somebody.
What words are commonly confused with "pestering"?
"pestering" is commonly confused with "posturing", "peering". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
What language does "pestering" come from?
"pestering" is a English word. PlainSpell covers definitions, pronunciations, and spelling data across English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and German.
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Yes, PlainSpell is a completely free word reference. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, confusable pairs, homophones, and spelling corrections across 5 languages without any sign-up or subscription.

Similar English words by spelling shape

Same letter count and similar misspelling depth for "pestering", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 9 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

Pizzagate#46,108plausibly#46,109proximate#46,120mothering#46,080

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (14 here; floor ≥5).

rainstorm14 variantsremittance14 variantsmaidenhead14 variantsshuddering14 variants

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list