disturb

verb

di-ˈstərb How to pronounce disturb (audio)
Definition of disturbnext
1
as in to bother
to trouble the mind of; to make uneasy all that talk of war disturbed us

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in to remove
to change the place or position of the items on her desk had been disturbed by someone

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in to disrupt
to undo the proper order or arrangement of her careful filing system is sure to be disturbed during the move

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
4
as in to worry
to thrust oneself upon (another) without invitation sorry to disturb you while you're working

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
5
as in to weigh
to cause discomfort to or trouble for please do not disturb yourself—I'll get my own drink

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Synonym Chooser

How does the verb disturb contrast with its synonyms?

Some common synonyms of disturb are agitate, discompose, disquiet, fluster, perturb, and upset. While all these words mean "to destroy capacity for collected thought or decisive action," disturb implies interference with one's mental processes caused by worry, perplexity, or interruption.

the discrepancy in accounts disturbed me

When is it sensible to use agitate instead of disturb?

In some situations, the words agitate and disturb are roughly equivalent. However, agitate suggests obvious external signs of nervous or emotional excitement.

in his agitated state we could see he was unable to work

When is discompose a more appropriate choice than disturb?

The synonyms discompose and disturb are sometimes interchangeable, but discompose implies some degree of loss of self-control or self-confidence especially through emotional stress.

discomposed by the loss of his beloved wife

When can disquiet be used instead of disturb?

The meanings of disquiet and disturb largely overlap; however, disquiet suggests loss of sense of security or peace of mind.

the disquieting news of factories closing

When would fluster be a good substitute for disturb?

While the synonyms fluster and disturb are close in meaning, fluster suggests bewildered agitation.

his declaration of love completely flustered her

When could perturb be used to replace disturb?

Although the words perturb and disturb have much in common, perturb implies deep disturbance of mind and emotions.

perturbed by her husband's strange behavior

In what contexts can upset take the place of disturb?

The words upset and disturb can be used in similar contexts, but upset implies the disturbance of normal or habitual functioning by disappointment, distress, or grief.

the family's constant bickering upsets the youngest child

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of disturb Chandler Newsome attempted to work out without being disturbed by his cats. —Nicholas Creel, MSNBC Newsweek, 18 Apr. 2025 Experts say to not disturb, move, touch or feed the animal. —Stacie N. Galang, USA Today, 18 Apr. 2025 Video from the scene on Thursday showed Sukkot surrounded by a group of Jewish men openly praying while an Israeli police officer walked around in the background, not disturbing or interrupting the prayer session. —Tamar Michaelis, CNN Money, 17 Apr. 2025 This involved manually disturbing the leg and then releasing it, capturing the resulting oscillations on high-speed video. —ArsTechnica, 16 Apr. 2025 See All Example Sentences for disturb
Recent Examples of Synonyms for disturb
  1. bother
  2. remove
  3. disrupt
  4. worry
  5. weigh
  6. distract
  7. relocate
  8. confuse
Verb
  • Scarlett Johansson's Black Widow was popular enough that fans wanted a solo story, but the studio didn't bother to make it until her character was already dead in the major timeline, then skipped the theatrical release, which Johansson sued them about.
    — Elizabeth Logan, Glamour, 19 Apr. 2025
  • The Mavericks defeated the Sacramento Kings on Wednesday night in Sacramento, 120-106; the Mavs led by more than 20 points in the first half, and the Kings never bothered to muster much of a run to make this interesting.
    — Mac Engel, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 17 Apr. 2025
Definition of bother
Verb
  • He's promised to remove taxes on tips, overtime and Social Security, and continue tax cuts that primarily benefited the wealthy, passed during his first term.
    — Trevor Hughes, USA Today, 28 Apr. 2025
  • The Defense Department at one point temporarily removed training videos recognizing the Tuskegee Airmen and an online biography of Jackie Robinson.
    — Michael Casey, Los Angeles Times, 27 Apr. 2025
Definition of remove
Verb
  • When someone has it, their immune system goes into overdrive, producing more antibodies (or immunoglobulins, hence the name) than necessary that disrupt typical organ function.
    — David Oliver, USA Today, 23 Apr. 2025
  • The administration’s moves will also halt a first-of-its-kind study of the causes of thousands of firefighters’ cancer cases and disrupt a program that provides health care to emergency personnel who responded to the World Trade Center terrorist attacks.
    — Mark Olalde, ProPublica, 21 Apr. 2025
Definition of disrupt
Verb
  • Moran worries that Alvarado, a diabetic breast cancer survivor who suffers from high blood pressure and needs to eat and drink frequently, will have poor access to her medication in detention — or after deportation.
    — Ilana Arougheti, Kansas City Star, 26 Apr. 2025
  • According to Breen’s brother-in-law, Corey Feist, many people worried that any move to take care of their mental health could affect their jobs.
    — Christina Ray Stanton, New York Daily News, 26 Apr. 2025
Definition of worry
Verb
  • After waking up his wife in the middle of the night to take him to the emergency room, Carroll weighed himself.
    — Gretchen Eichenberg, FOXNews.com, 23 Apr. 2025
  • That result weighed heavily on the players and coach Cathy Reese.
    — Edward Lee, Baltimore Sun, 23 Apr. 2025
Definition of weigh
Verb
  • Too often, however, the temptation to blame individuals or groups for housing ills distracts from the actual debate and prevents all stakeholders from discovering their mutual interests.
    — Matt Frazier, Forbes.com, 21 Apr. 2025
  • The scientists now plan on developing the technology further, which will include boosting its ability to filter out distracting background noises such as those produced by body movements.
    — New Atlas, New Atlas, 19 Apr. 2025
Definition of distract
Verb
  • The couple relocated to the Eastern Shore two years ago.
    — Todd Karpovich, Baltimore Sun, 22 Apr. 2025
  • Boca Raton parks and recreation officials are looking to improve and update the city’s parks by analyzing the existing parks to determine what changes are needed the most and where to relocate some of the city’s current facilities.
    — South Florida Sun Sentinel, Sun Sentinel, 22 Apr. 2025
Definition of relocate
Verb
  • Snakeheads are often confused with a native species—the bowfin—but anglers can tell them apart by looking at the anal fin, which is much longer on a snakehead.
    — Sarah Kuta, Smithsonian Magazine, 18 Apr. 2025
  • For decades, audiences have confused the two for one another — a line that's gotten all the more blurry as the Grammy winner launched her acting career and the Emmy winner began singing in multiple projects, including her turn as Sally Bowles in the 2014 Broadway revival of Cabaret.
    — Dave Quinn, People.com, 18 Apr. 2025
Definition of confuse

Browse Nearby Words

distrusts
disturb
disturbance
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Cite this Entry

“Disturb.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/disturb. Accessed 2 May. 2025.

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