upsetting

adjective

up·​set·​ting (ˌ)əp-ˈse-tiŋ 

: mentally or emotionally troubling or disturbing : causing feelings of worry or anxiety

heard some upsetting news

an upsetting experience

We're up to [a deficit of] $1.5 trillion a year …. These numbers are truly upsetting.

—Bill Gates

Professors issue, or students demand, trigger warnings when presenting material that might be upsetting to some: depictions of rape, sexism, racism, suicide.

—Yvonne Abraham

upsettingly adverb

an upsettingly graphic depiction of violence

In comparison to male historical figures, the number of women that we learn about throughout school is upsettingly low.

—Alexis Gardner

Synonyms

• disturbing
• unsettling
• troubling
• frightening

Examples of upsetting in a Sentence

the constant arguing is upsetting to a sensitive person like your grandmother

Recent Examples on the Web

Ohio State lost to Michigan to end the regular season but earned a spot in the CFP and came within a last-second field goal of upsetting Georgia in the Peach Bowl. —Austin Meek, New York Times, 7 July 2025

The outburst prompted Crivello to tell her family that Scarbrough needed to remain calm in the future, despite how upsetting the evidence is. —David Clarey, jsonline.com, 3 July 2025

For Ben Mogen, Madison’s father, the plea deal wasn’t as upsetting. —Alex Brizee, Idaho Statesman, 1 July 2025

This slippage is occurring amid some upsetting trends for the old guard and great news for digital platforms. —Kevin Dolak, HollywoodReporter, 16 June 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1872, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for upsetting

• abetting
• begetting
• besetting
• bloodletting
• briquetting
• forgetting
• offsetting
• pipetting
• regretting
• resetting
• subletting
• typesetting