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I know the verb bother as in "I didn't bother testing" or the noun bother as in "it's no bother", but this is the first time I encounter this word as a kind of interjection or single-word sentence, written by a native:

Note that in casual testing this 'worked', because backspace deletes the pawn and together. Bother.

What is the meaning of "Bother."? What nuance does it add to the paragraph, which would be missed if it had not been added?

I can't find this usage on Wiktionary.

The context is the following: He is the guy who is managing bugs, so this bug might bother him, or maybe he now regrets that he did not bother writing a more complete test.

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    I think it's definition 8 in Collins: (mainly British) an exclamation of slight annoyance
    – user230
    May 10, 2013 at 2:24
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    If you can't find it on Wiktionary, then use a real dictionary: M-W or Macmillan. Wiktionary is not the best place to look for usage information or definitions. It has some value, but not enough to satisfy me.
    – user264
    May 10, 2013 at 2:40
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    @snailboat As popularized in the U.S. by Winnie the Pooh! ;)
    – WendiKidd
    May 10, 2013 at 21:19
  • Wikitionary has the interjection use: en.wiktionary.org/wiki/bother#Interjection
    – James K
    Jun 1, 2016 at 6:50

1 Answer 1

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snailboat has found the answer:

http://www.collinsdictionary.com/dictionary/english/bother

exclamation (mainly British) an exclamation of slight annoyance

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    "Bother", said Pooh. "There's an infinite number of monkeys at the door who want to sue A.A. Milne for plagiarism".
    – FakeDIY
    May 10, 2013 at 8:43
  • Pooh is the only place I've ever heard that expression.
    – Ron Jensen
    May 3, 2016 at 23:08

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