nagging

adjective

nag·​ging ˈna-giŋ 

1

: persistently annoying or finding fault with someone

a nagging husband/wife

2

a

: causing continual or recurring worry or anxiety

a nagging fear

This time, the worry is that the housing slowdown will curtail growth before the Federal Reserve gets nagging inflation concerns resolved.

—Scott Patterson

b

: causing continual or recurring pain or discomfort

He'd had a nagging headache all day.

a nagging injury

naggingly

ˈna-giŋ-lē 

adverb

There has always been something naggingly sad about Bonds' career …

—Tim Keown

… something about the book feels naggingly familiar, as if you know how it will end before you start …

—Debra Pickett

Synonyms

• discomforting
• discomposing
• disquieting
• distressing
• disturbing
• nasty
• perturbing
• troublesome
• troubling
• troublous
• unsettling
• upsetting
• worrisome

Examples of nagging in a Sentence

I have this nagging feeling that something will still go wrong

Recent Examples on the Web

But Muncy is healthy now after a nagging side injury that cost him much of the summer and required treatment all the way through the Dodgers’ World Series run. —Fabian Ardaya, The Athletic, 14 Mar. 2025

Meanwhile, goalkeeper Drake Callender, who has yet to play this season due to a nagging adductor injury, will not travel to Jamaica. —Michelle Kaufman, Miami Herald, 12 Mar. 2025

Many capable, accomplished women live in the ‘not enough’ trap, wrestling daily with a nagging sense of inadequacy. —Margie Warrell, Forbes, 8 Mar. 2025

Star point guard Jrue Holiday remains out due to a nagging hand injury. —Tommy Tuberville, Newsweek, 7 Mar. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1829, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for nagging

• bagging
• bragging
• dragging
• flagging
• gagging
• lagging
• sagging
• slagging
• snagging
• tagging
• wagging
• unflagging