disrupt

verb

dis·rupt | \ dis-ˈrəpt

disrupted; disrupting; disrupts

Definition of disrupt

1a : to break apart : rupture three periods of faulting disrupted the rocks — University of Arizona Record

b : to throw into disorder demonstrators trying to disrupt the meeting

2 : to interrupt the normal course or unity of … disrupted a bridge game by permanently hiding up the ace of spades …— Scott Fitzgerald can disrupt an industry with new technology

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Examples of disrupt in a Sentence

The barking dogs disrupted my sleep. The weather disrupted our travel plans. a chemical that disrupts cell function

Recent Examples on the Web

The companies appear motivated by the popularity of e-bikes, and their potential to disrupt the ridehailing business. — Matt Mcfarland, CNN, "Lyft returns e-bikes to streets for first time since crashes," 11 June 2019 While some hair-care ingredients, like sulfates and silicones, can affect your hair and scalp health (more on that later), others may be hazardous for your entire body, with the potential to disrupt or mimic hormones. — Deanna Pai, Bon Appétit, "Why a Good, Clean Haircare Brand Is Hard to Find," 11 June 2019 Recognizing the need for change, Cengage recently made the bold move to disrupt its own business model while addressing students’ pain points around affordability. — Jessica Levy, Cincinnati.com, "Cengage improves affordable access to quality learning with digital subscription," 7 June 2019 For one, the Warriors have done an excellent job shading help defenders toward his drives to disrupt his rhythm. — Andrew Sharp, SI.com, "Four Pressing Questions Heading Into Game 4 of NBA Finals," 7 June 2019 The taxes could raise the price of fruits and vegetables and disrupt the supply chain for auto parts in ways that could hurt vehicle sales. — Washington Post, "Poor Americans likely to be hit hardest by new US tariffs," 4 June 2019 Other measures show sharp swings in shipping demand amid uncertainty in U.S. trade and poor weather this year that has disrupted supply chains. — Jennifer Smith, WSJ, "Freight Market Shifts into Lower Gear," 24 May 2019 The traffickers should face criminal charges and receive jail time for their involvement in such schemes, and law enforcement officers should work to disrupt and destroy the criminal gangs that perform such trafficking. — Ron Amadeo, Ars Technica, "Our favorite (and least favorite) tech of 2018," 26 Dec. 2018 The protesters are part of a nationwide campaign to disrupt the confirmation process. — Fox News, "Kavanaugh hearing protests continue as Capitol Police charge 69 demonstrators Thursday," 2 Oct. 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'disrupt.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.