1
2
as in to disturb
to trouble the mind of; to make uneasy
distracted by the looming tax deadline
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
1
as in diverting
to draw the attention or mind to something else
we were distracted from our discussion by the noise outside
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in bothering
to trouble the mind of; to make uneasy
distracted by the looming tax deadline
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in confounding
Related Words
Dissimilar Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of distracting
William Arruda, Forbes.com, 11 Aug. 2025
Catherine Santino, PEOPLE, 28 Oct. 2025
The ability to just laser-focus on these are the three or four meaningful things — don’t get distracted by the noise.
—Evan Clark, Footwear News, 28 Oct. 2025
Sasha Rogelberg, Fortune, 23 Oct. 2025
Latino advocates and community members worry complaints about the court mandates and the price tag will become an excuse, distracting from the root issue — the need to end racial profiling by the sheriff’s office.
—Rafael Carranza, ProPublica, 21 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for distracting
Verb
Choose a clean, non-distracting background that doesn’t compete with your mug for attention.
—William Arruda, Forbes.com, 11 Aug. 2025
Verb
From her hospital bed, Danny tried to distract herself from her circumstances (and her injuries).
—Catherine Santino, PEOPLE, 28 Oct. 2025
The ability to just laser-focus on these are the three or four meaningful things — don’t get distracted by the noise.
—Evan Clark, Footwear News, 28 Oct. 2025
Adjective
Drivers may also not want to wear the devices, which may be uncomfortable or distracting, the sources said.
—Sasha Rogelberg, Fortune, 23 Oct. 2025
Latino advocates and community members worry complaints about the court mandates and the price tag will become an excuse, distracting from the root issue — the need to end racial profiling by the sheriff’s office.
—Rafael Carranza, ProPublica, 21 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for distracting
Recent Examples of Synonyms for distracting
Adjective
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What is the most confounding and terrible, however, is Gretchen’s assertion that Slade, the anti-Viagra, doesn’t get involved with the women on his own accord, but only engages because the women always talk about him.—
Brian Moylan,
Vulture,
10 Oct. 2025
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The offense’s struggles are the most confounding.—
Zach Berman,
New York Times,
10 Oct. 2025
Adjective
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The sheriff’s office was called, and initially the deaths were deemed suspicious, though the situation seemed more perplexing than criminal.—
Joy Williams,
Harpers Magazine,
24 Oct. 2025
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In a whirlwind year for the organization, his slump was one of the more perplexing developments.—
Corey Masisak,
Denver Post,
18 Oct. 2025
Adjective
-
The second flare is even more puzzling.—
Keith Cooper,
Space.com,
16 Oct. 2025
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Staffers spent the weekend trading calls and texts, trying to piece together who had been axed, who had been spared, and, most puzzling, why.—
Tom Bartlett,
The Atlantic,
13 Oct. 2025
Adjective
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Grokipedia, like Wikipedia, includes citations for its statements, but several users have pointed out claims with inaccurate citations.—
Miranda Jeyaretnam,
Time,
28 Oct. 2025
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The development group then filed a lawsuit with the Ohio Supreme Court, stating the the petition language used to garner the referendum was misleading and inaccurate.—
Sydney Franklin,
Cincinnati Enquirer,
24 Oct. 2025
Adjective
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He was found dead lying face up on his hotel bed with no signs of trauma, according to a Monday report from the Orange County Sheriff’s Office in Florida.—
Kenan Draughorne,
Los Angeles Times,
14 Jan. 2022
Adjective
-
The friction can be bewildering.—
Kate Bernot,
Bon Appetit Magazine,
29 Oct. 2025
-
Bizarre pivot Trump’s sudden embrace of Jewish students, pitting them against purportedly reckless university leaders, remains bewildering.—
James Druckman,
Mercury News,
17 Oct. 2025
Adjective
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The Wild earned a power play for the incorrect challenge but couldn’t extend the lead to 2-0.—
Michael Russo,
New York Times,
31 Oct. 2025
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Trump has also mistakenly claimed that China and Russia are currently testing nuclear weapons and directed the incorrect agency — the Department of War — to resume testing rather than the Department of Energy, which oversees the nation’s nuclear warheads, Sanders-Zakre said.—
Joshua Rhett Miller,
MSNBC Newsweek,
30 Oct. 2025
Adjective
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Andrew Wheatley, minister without portfolio in the prime minister’s office, said the Jamaica Cyber Incident Response Team has identified more than two dozen fraudulent hurricane relief websites attempting to divert contributions and donations from legitimate sources.—
Jacqueline Charles,
Miami Herald,
31 Oct. 2025
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Following a 2023 trial, a Florida jury found the Johns Hopkins All Children's Hospital liable for false imprisonment, battery, fraudulent billing, wrongful death and intentional infliction of emotional distress — allegations by Kowalski's family that were documented in the Netflix documentary.—
Samira Asma-Sadeque,
PEOPLE,
30 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Distracting.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/distracting. Accessed 4 Nov. 2025.
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