dislocate

verb

dis·​lo·​cate ˈdis-lō-ˌkāt 

-lə-;

(ˌ)dis-ˈlō- 

dislocated; dislocating; dislocates

transitive verb

1

: to put out of place

specifically : to displace (a bone) from normal connections with another bone

2

: to force a change in the usual status, relationship, or order of : disrupt

Synonyms of dislocate

• relocate
• move
• remove
• transfer
• shift
• disturb

Examples of dislocate in a Sentence

She fell and dislocated her shoulder.

The new hotel will dislocate several businesses.

Thousands of workers have been dislocated by the latest economic crisis.

Recent Examples on the Web

Daniels dislocated his left (non-throwing) elbow in a loss to the Dallas Cowboys. — Kyle Feldscher, CNN Money, 22 Sep. 2026

Fox Sports announcer Tom Brady might have spoken for all of us when viewing the play in which Washington Commanders quarterback Jayden Daniels dislocated his left elbow Sunday against the Dallas Cowboys. — Chuck Schilken, Los Angeles Times, 21 Sep. 2026

Daniels, who played only seven of 17 games last year, dislocated the same left elbow last season and opted not to have surgery in an effort to try and save the season. — Armando Salguero Outkick, FOXNews.com, 21 Sep. 2026

Daniels, who was replaced by Marcus Mariota, missed all but one game in the second half of last season after dislocating his left elbow in a blowout loss to Seattle last November. — ABC News, 20 Sep. 2026

Word History

Etymology

Medieval Latin dislocatus, past participle of dislocare, from Latin dis- + locare to locate

First Known Use

1601, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Kids Definition

dislocate

verb

dis·​lo·​cate ˈdis-lō-ˌkāt 

(ˈ)dis-ˈlō-

1

: to put out of place

especially : to displace (a bone) from normal connections with another bone

2

: disrupt

Medical Definition

dislocate

transitive verb

dis·​lo·​cate ˈdis-lō-ˌkāt  -lə-; (ˈ)dis-ˈlō-ˌkāt 

dislocated; dislocating

: to put (a body part) out of order by displacing a bone from its normal connections with another bone

he dislocated his shoulder

also : to displace (a bone) from normal connections with another bone

the humerus was dislocated in the fall