perturbing

adjective

per·​turb·​ing pər-ˈtər-biŋ 

: causing worry, upset, or concern : unsettling

… the absence of mail was somehow just as perturbing as its presence, and it made him feel strangely on edge.

—Bentley Little

Rowland had an odd feeling … that she might make, later, some perturbing discovery.

—Henry James

perturbingly adverb

The one memorable sequence in this perturbingly aimless piece is a pensive, wistful solo toward the start …

—Alan M. Kriegsman

Synonyms

• discomforting
• discomposing
• disquieting
• distressing
• disturbing
• nagging
• nasty
• troublesome
• troubling
• troublous
• unsettling
• upsetting
• worrisome

Examples of perturbing in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Peters, affecting an unnervingly flat Wisconsin accent, gets to give yet another perturbing performance. —Caroline Framke, Variety, 21 Sep. 2022

These questions remain as A Lot of Nothing careens to a shock-value ending that’s more perturbing than exciting. —Lovia Gyarkye, The Hollywood Reporter, 13 Mar. 2022

The same perturbing pattern was seen within a year of the introduction of the antibiotic methicillin in 1961, a drug specifically designed to treat penicillin-resistant S. aureus. —Rebecca Kreston, Discover Magazine, 29 Nov. 2016

Word History

First Known Use

1559, in the meaning defined above