What's the difference between annoy and vex?

Annoy


Definition:

  • (n.) To disturb or irritate, especially by continued or repeated acts; to tease; to ruffle in mind; to vex; as, I was annoyed by his remarks.
  • (n.) To molest, incommode, or harm; as, to annoy an army by impeding its march, or by a cannonade.
  • (n.) A feeling of discomfort or vexation caused by what one dislikes; also, whatever causes such a feeling; as, to work annoy.

Example Sentences:

  • (1) Asked about white predominance in the sport, South African rugby journalist Paul Dobson replied: "If you suggest that again I'll get annoyed and put the phone down.
  • (2) He was 'annoyed' after a phone call with Maxine Carr, in which she'd told him she was going out 'again' with her mother that evening in Grimsby ('Do you like to control people?'
  • (3) When my pictures were published, some Star Wars fans were annoyed that the house in this picture had been left in such a state of disrepair.
  • (4) One of the most annoying complications of rhinoplasty is the supra-tip hump (pollybeak).
  • (5) Indeed, while people might be annoyed or alarmed at the idea of being given placebos, medics probably wouldn't need to were it not for the modern blight of the Worried Well clogging up consulting rooms.
  • (6) Although mumbling is frustrating and annoying at times, it may be a helpful clue to some of the client's most anxiety-provoking thoughts or feelings.
  • (7) Later, when Leven moved to another squat, in Maida Vale, London, he suggested they bring in a bass player and percussionist to form a band, and they started rehearsing "with mattresses around the walls to deaden the sound, but still annoying the neighbours".
  • (8) It’s annoying that we haven’t stretched our lead but we’ve got to accept that and take it forward.
  • (9) It is difficult to prove that noise is detrimental to our health; many people are annoyed by noise; however, only particular groups (children, the elderly, the handicapped, people who wear a hearing aid, people with heart disease) are affected as far as health is concerned, and it is these people who require special protection.
  • (10) Noise in open-plan computer rooms and annoyance and perceived deterioration in performance associated with it also appears to be a problem that may be similarly categorized.
  • (11) The program kept asking what my surname at birth was - annoying, since, despite getting married in 1994, I've had the same surname all my life.
  • (12) Our government understands that we have to help but if they send troops officially, that would annoy Europe, and Nato.
  • (13) Rather than getting annoyed, you’re feeling comforted.
  • (14) Amazon and MasterCard don't like it either, and their clients were probably annoyed.
  • (15) His annoyance was memorably captured by a BBC film crew for a documentary.
  • (16) And you can see that some writers' talents are fed by great exposure to society and then there are others – DH Lawrence is a good example – who think they want acceptance but actually they can't stand it and they've got to annoy people by pointing out uncomfortable things, and that's more me.
  • (17) Merkel will be annoyed that a group set up by the Tories has given a platform to her opponents.
  • (18) Information on safety and side effects is also presented, such as a possible increase in serum cholesterol levels and annoying side effects that may severely limit widespread use of this food supplement.
  • (19) After the second such call, my wife became annoyed at the intrusion he was making in our weekend.
  • (20) Irritations are mainly due to the particulate phase of environmental tobacco smoke, whereas the gas phase is to a large extent responsible for annoyance.

Vex


Definition:

  • (v. t.) To to/s back and forth; to agitate; to disquiet.
  • (v. t.) To make angry or annoyed by little provocations; to irritate; to plague; to torment; to harass; to afflict; to trouble; to tease.
  • (v. t.) To twist; to weave.
  • (v. i.) To be irritated; to fret.

Example Sentences:

  • (1) De Boer's successor's first tasks will be to keep the US aboard the negotiations and to clear up the vexed question of the legal status of the Copenhagen accord , the deal struck at Copenhagen by a small group but not endorsed by a majority of countries.
  • (2) There is also the vexed question of what should be the legal form of any Paris agreement, a subject likely to keep negotiators up late into the night at the conference, and some anxiety among the hosts over whether the text of a deal can be formulated in due time.
  • (3) But the bigger question, the one that has vexed historians, biographers and holocaust experts for eight decades, is why she was there.
  • (4) Cs (2 mM) reduced diastolic depolarization (DD) at different [Ca]O and in 10.8 mM [Ca]O revealed an oscillatory potential (VOS) and the decay of a prolonged depolarization (Vex).
  • (5) The past few days have been vexing ones for reporting guidelines, voluntary or legal.
  • (6) The present data also highlighted the vexed relationship between stress and seizure control, which needs to be further investigated.
  • (7) Another vexed national question in the coming months will be this one: who is the most worthy winner of BBC Sports Personality of the Year?
  • (8) Delivery of monoclonal antibodies to solid tumors is a vexing problem that must be solved if these antibodies are to realize their promise in therapy.
  • (9) Pathologists without considerable experience in the diagnosis of bone tumors find this question especially vexing.
  • (10) Caffeine (5 mM) abolishes Vos and Ios and increases Vex and Iex (as DOXO does), and adding DOXO slightly increased Vex and Iex.
  • (11) Posttraumatic joint stiffness is particularly vexing in the small joints.
  • (12) In this spirit, a vignette is offered from a clinical area in which questions of "health" and "illness" are particularly vexing at present.
  • (13) Some might argue that our eyes weren't quite on the ball back in '89: never mind the cataclysmic political upheaval in eastern Europe – the results of which still echo around the world – let's devote ourselves to a page concerned with vexed questions such as: why is water wet?
  • (14) The draft provides scant details on the vexed subject of accountability for emission reduction programmes.
  • (15) Nowhere was the commission’s balancing act more finely weighted than on the vexed question of bioenergy, which Cañete admitted was “a clear problem”.
  • (16) The top Chinese negotiator, Xie Zhenhua, said there was also a possibility of advances on the vexed issued of transparency – how to monitor, report and verify each nation's emissions to ensure they are honouring their pledges.
  • (17) But now it’s Isis who are the insurgents,” leaving the peshmerga with the vexing challenge of defending and holding territory.
  • (18) On the vexed issue of longer term finance, the Ethiopian prime minister Meles Zenawi presented an offer to reduce developing country demands by 75% to $100bn a year from 2020, in return for guarantees of how the money would be distributed.
  • (19) Discussed here are some contours of the vexing problem of adequate minority participation in the health professions and a brief discussion of some programs that appear to be working.
  • (20) After the creed and some Benjamin Britten, and a blessing and a long round of applause, the man charged with holding together the fractious global Anglican communion as it struggles with the vexed issues of women bishops and same-sex marriage processed out of the cathedral and into the bitterly cold spring afternoon.