present participle of frustrate
"The endless waiting line was incredibly frustrating as we finally reached the front and had to start over again."
In plain English: To frustrate someone means to make them feel annoyed and unable to do what they want because things are going wrong or being blocked by you.
"He will frustrate his opponents by changing direction quickly."
discouraging by hindering
"The endless traffic made my late commute incredibly frustrating."
preventing realization or attainment of a desire
"The heavy traffic was frustrating because it prevented us from reaching our destination on time."
Discouraging; causing annoyance or anger by excessive difficulty.
"The endless loading screen was frustrating as it prevented me from playing my favorite game."
In plain English: Frustrating means something is annoying and makes you feel upset because it stops you from doing what you want to do.
"The long line at the checkout was quite frustrating."
Usage: Use "frustrating" to describe situations that block progress rather than people's emotions, as the latter typically requires a different adjective like "annoying." Avoid using it interchangeably with "exhausting," since frustration stems from unmet goals while exhaustion comes from physical or mental fatigue.
The word frustrating comes from combining the verb frustrate with the suffix -ing to describe something that causes frustration. It entered English through a straightforward grammatical formation rather than borrowing directly from another language.