displeasing
part of speech
adjective (displeasing, more displeasing, most displeasing); also the -ing form of the verb displease (displease, displeases, displeased, displeasing)
meaning for a pupil
1) (formal) Displeasing means not nice or not pleasant; making you feel annoyed, uncomfortable or unhappy. tree →
2) (verb) Displeasing someone means making them annoyed or unhappy. tree →
sense in the lessons
A formal or old-fashioned word, common in classic stories and polite speech: something is «displeasing to the eye/ear» or «displeasing to the king». It is a softer, more polite way of saying «unpleasant» or «I don't like it» — a kind of understatement. Phrases: displeasing to the eye, displeasing to the ear, afraid of displeasing.
examples
- The sour smell was displeasing. tree →
- The ugly new wall was displeasing to the eye. tree →
- The squeaky violin made a displeasing sound. tree →
- The servant was afraid of displeasing the queen. tree →
- She found the cold, grey room rather displeasing. tree →
- Displeasing your coach by being late is a bad idea. tree →
- "For, my dear child," she said to her, "it would be a great sin to submit to your father's wishes, but you can avoid the necessity without displeasing him. tree →
note
Formed from dis- + pleasing. Everyday words: unpleasant, nasty, horrible. The past form displeased is common as an adjective: «Mum was displeased» (annoyed). Opposite: pleasing.
Trees and pragmatics
Every meaning and example of «displeasing» parsed by Mova, each sentence with its dependency tree and frames.