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2d]Live competition in which Liverpool play caused vexation.[11]
(R)?L????????

Beleaguered . (Be+league+red).

Ta Malone.

Obviously correct, malone, but I don't think the definition is quite right, is it? You only "beleaguer" someone else in the military sense of "lay siege to"; otherwise it's a passive verb? (I.e. one can "be beleaguered")

Chambers gives 'pester' as a definition of 'beleaguer' so I suppose the past tense works, 'caused vexation'/pestered/beleaguered.

OK


I seem to make a habit of disagreeing with Chambers - it is very much a "descriptive" rather than "prescriptive" dictionary!

Did you see the interesting article on language mistakes and "non-mistakes" by Steven Pinker in the Review section of today's Guardian?

I didn't see that article - will have a look to see if it's available online.

PS - Chambers isn't perfect, but this definition didn't bother me too much (as the answer was obviously correct).

http://www.theguardian.com/books/2014/aug/15/steven-pinker-10-grammar-rules-break

that's from yesterday i think?

That's odd, trevor - it seems to be the same article, but the one I read was definitely in the Review section of the Saturday Guardian - a pre-release, perhaps?