Meaning

noun an angry disturbance

noun something or someone that causes trouble; a source of unhappiness

verb take the trouble to do something; concern oneself

originBorrowed from Scots bauther, bather (“to bother”). Origin unknown. Perhaps related to Scots pother (“to make a stir or commotion, bustle”), also of unknown origin. Compare English pother (“to poke, prod”), variant of potter (“to poke”). More at potter. Perhaps related to Irish bodhaire (“noise”), Irish bodhraim (“to deafen, annoy”).

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 3.0