to pick
- verb
- /pɪk/
- How can I have a good attitude when you've been picking on me all day?
- pick a fight
- pick on others
- bullies pick on others
This this is where he picks a fight with the Teamsters.
- This this is where he picks a fight with the Teamsters.
- Drive drunk, drive fast, pick fights, sleep with married women.
Examples
-
I wish you wouldn't pick on Rose and tease her like that.
Fiction book (1991) -
And I wish you wouldn't pick on the poor girl all the time.
Fiction book (1991) -
The next time you want to hit somebody, pick on somebody your own size.
-
I know you have a bone to pick with me.
-
I got a bone to pick with you!
-
Since when have I been picking on you?
-
Some felt that students who got picked on could potentially develop behavioral problems or even become violent.
Academic text (2003) -
He's no fun to pick on anymore since his old man died.
-
Whatever the situation or causes, bullies usually pick on others as a way of dealing with their own problems.
Academic text (2008) -
Stop picking on him; he is too sensitive to handle your jokes.
Synonyms
Annoy someone again and again to make them react
To push people to do violent or illegal acts
To make people feel strong emotions like anger or fear
To cause something bad to start
To make someone angry or unfriendly
To cause people to argue or become divided on purpose
Make someone angry or annoyed on purpose by teasing them
To cause trouble by saying things to make people argue
To make an argument or feeling worse by encouraging it
To cause fights or problems between people on purpose
To do something on purpose to make an angry or dangerous person react
To make someone angry or upset
Make people more angry and cause conflict between groups
To do or say something on purpose to upset someone and see their reaction
To annoy someone or make them feel defensive
To annoy someone so they become defensive
To say or do things that cause arguments and make people angry
To cause trouble between people to get attention
To cause a lot of trouble and anger among people
To make people argue or fight
To cause disagreement between people or groups
Antonyms
Idioms
- Informal
To choose which problems to deal with instead of trying to solve every problem
- Informal
Challenge someone of similar size or strength instead of someone weaker
- Informal
To leave a group or activity because you do not get your way
Phrasal Verbs
- Informal
Choose only data that supports an idea and ignore data that disagrees
To start an earlier activity or conversation again after an interruption
- Specialized
To copy one change from a code branch into another without copying other changes
Touching scabs again and again so they do not heal, sometimes meaning you reopen old hurts
- Informal
To ask someone for ideas or advice about something they know well
Compounds
- Specialized
A play where the pitcher or catcher throws quickly to tag a runner off base
- Specialized
A rare disease passed from parents that makes fat build up in the body's cells
- Specialized
A tool with a pointed end and a flat blade for digging and breaking hard soil or rock
- Specialized
A hand tool with a pointed end and a flat blade for digging and breaking hard rocky soil
How Provoking
Surface Forms
Etymology
Pick meaning to start a fight comes from the image of choosing someone to bother or 'picking on' them, so to pick a quarrel is to begin or provoke an argument.