distracts

verb

present tense third-person singular of distract
1
as in diverts
to draw the attention or mind to something else we were distracted from our discussion by the noise outside

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in disturbs
to trouble the mind of; to make uneasy distracted by the looming tax deadline

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of distracts Theranos whistleblower Tyler Shultz and Bad Blood author John Carreyrou have both weighed in, and Fortune has questioned whether her new persona distracts from the real story. — Bilin Lin, Fortune, 25 Oct. 2026 Similarly, Sudan hopes that internal conflict in Ethiopia distracts Addis from its support of the rapid support forces militia in Sudan’s war. — Paul Tilsley, FOXNews.com, 14 Oct. 2026 If a leaf of grass is no less than the journey-work of the stars, the art inside an airport that reminds us of our humanity and distracts us from our fatigue is an object worthy of praise. — Kat Chen, Condé Nast Traveler, 14 Oct. 2026 Yes, a legal circus distracts from the things that matter and creates a massive amount of drama all its own. — Jackson McHenry, Vulture, 1 Oct. 2026 Often, undercapitalization is a major challenge for new franchisees and distracts from operations. — Angelo Chavez, Forbes.com, 4 Sep. 2026 Scientists now are spending an increasing amount of time worrying about keeping the lights on and people employed, which ultimately distracts from time spent doing research. — Abdullah Shihipar, STAT, 1 Sep. 2026 All the while, a clean-up crew led by Drew Starkey’s kinky, idiosyncratic hit man Cyrus follows close behind, but this is a third, more vestigial movie, which only distracts from the main event. — Siddhant Adlakha, Variety, 31 Aug. 2026 The antagonist of the new Toy Story film is a tablet, whose addictive presence distracts the toys’ young owner from unstructured, creative play. — Literary Hub, 28 Aug. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for distracts
  1. diverts
  2. disturbs
  3. detracts
  4. bothers
  5. worries
  6. angers
  7. unsettles
  8. concerns
Verb
  • Five days earlier, the Republican lawmaker had proposed to limit payouts from a voucher program that diverts public tax dollars to private education.
    — Henry Culvyhouse, ProPublica, 19 Oct. 2026
  • Prop 137 diverts money from the state's current sales tax on sporting goods to conservation, wildfire risk mitigation and outdoor recreation programs.
    — Shaun Boyd, CBS News, 12 Oct. 2026
Definition of diverts
Verb
  • Some of the sightings claim a man wearing clothing typical of the 17th or 18th centuries, a man dressed in Confederate attire in the liquor room, a ghost of a former worker Joseph Hardesty and a female who actively disturbs visitors to her home.
    — Kaitlyn Keegan, Hartford Courant, 25 Sep. 2026
  • Vibration disturbs the natural sediments in wine, flattening the flavor and aging it prematurely.
    — Brandee Gruener, Southern Living, 25 Sep. 2026
Definition of disturbs
Verb
  • If the expansion detracts somehow from the SARA cult fever, the co-owners are OK with that.
    — Senior Wine Critic, San Francisco Chronicle, 15 June 2017
Definition of detracts
Verb
  • The film was produced by the Zagha bothers for Avanti Pictures alongside Elsa Reyes and Películas V’s Valentín Javier Diment and Vanesa Pagani.
    — Melanie Goodfellow, Deadline, 29 Oct. 2026
  • Television doesn’t lack for comedies that deliver biting satire and cogent commentary — that are, in fact, so committed to commentary that nobody bothers to even include jokes.
    — Daniel Fienberg, HollywoodReporter, 22 Oct. 2026
Definition of bothers
Verb
  • Abdi worries that Miller’s latest promotion will further anti-immigrant policies, which have long painted Iranians and other immigrant communities as threats.
    — Karen Garcia, Los Angeles Times, 7 Nov. 2026
  • Comen understands the desire for answers but worries that interpreting complex medical information without a physician’s guidance can heighten fear.
    — Emily Cegielski, Flow Space, 6 Nov. 2026
Definition of worries
Verb
  • Lai and his Democratic Progressive Party champion Taiwan’s separate identity from China, a position that frequently angers Beijing, which views the island as Chinese territory.
    — Reuters, NBC news, 5 Oct. 2026
  • The receptionist angers Kripke and Bert so much that they are picked up by the police — along with Stuart, who had also been arrested.
    — Michael Schneider, Variety, 31 July 2026
Definition of angers
Verb
  • Spry said the attacker could have targeted any neighborhood residents — a thought that still unsettles her, given how easily the situation could have escalated.
    — Doha Madani, NBC news, 5 Aug. 2026
  • That is precisely the capability that unsettles underwriters, because an agent that can decide is an agent that can decide wrongly, and fast.
    — Dara-Abasi Ita, Forbes.com, 12 June 2026
Definition of unsettles
Verb
  • The case concerns the Israeli military’s bombing of a residential building in Beirut on November 26, 2024, just a few hours before a ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hezbollah was due to come into effect.
    — Melanie Goodfellow, Deadline, 3 Nov. 2026
  • What concerns me is the gap that can open between enterprises with access to the same technology.
    — Todd Bernson, Forbes.com, 30 Oct. 2026
Definition of concerns

Browse Nearby Words

distractive
distracts
distrait
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Cite this Entry

“Distracts.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/distracts. Accessed 9 Nov. 2026.

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