1
as in commotions
a state of noisy, confused activity
went to investigate the disturbance outside
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in disruptions
an act or instance of the order of things being disturbed
caused a disturbance in the carefully ordered proceedings
Synonyms & Similar Words
3
as in harassments
the act of making unwelcome intrusions upon another
the assistant apologized for the disturbance and got straight to the point
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of disturbances
La Niña is El Niño’s cooler water sibling that can also lead to global weather disturbances.
—
Andrew Freedman, CNN Money, 10 Mar. 2026
Detainees struggle to obtain medication and healthcare, lose concerning amounts of weight because of a lack of food, and live in fear of private security guards known to use force to put down disturbances.
—Morgan Lee, Los Angeles Times, 8 Mar. 2026
Games between Rangers and Celtic are heavily policed and often lead to disturbances around the city of Glasgow, where both clubs are based.
—Luke Bosher, New York Times, 8 Mar. 2026
That system will send several atmospheric disturbances into Texas that will keep rain chances high across the region.
—Mary Wasson, Austin American Statesman, 8 Mar. 2026
Weeds take advantage of disturbances and bare soil to invade lawns.
—Kim Toscano, Southern Living, 8 Mar. 2026
The change had come following years of youth disturbances, including major brawls and nearby shootings.
—Andrew Adeolu, CBS News, 8 Mar. 2026
Meanwhile, the reinforcement learning system was trained using hundreds of millions of simulated disturbances in a virtual environment.
—Atharva Gosavi, Interesting Engineering, 3 Mar. 2026
In contrast, several weather disturbances will induce considerable cloud cover primarily over the central and eastern states.
—Joe Rao, Space.com, 2 Mar. 2026
Andrew Freedman, CNN Money, 10 Mar. 2026
Detainees struggle to obtain medication and healthcare, lose concerning amounts of weight because of a lack of food, and live in fear of private security guards known to use force to put down disturbances.
—Morgan Lee, Los Angeles Times, 8 Mar. 2026
Games between Rangers and Celtic are heavily policed and often lead to disturbances around the city of Glasgow, where both clubs are based.
—Luke Bosher, New York Times, 8 Mar. 2026
That system will send several atmospheric disturbances into Texas that will keep rain chances high across the region.
—Mary Wasson, Austin American Statesman, 8 Mar. 2026
Weeds take advantage of disturbances and bare soil to invade lawns.
—Kim Toscano, Southern Living, 8 Mar. 2026
The change had come following years of youth disturbances, including major brawls and nearby shootings.
—Andrew Adeolu, CBS News, 8 Mar. 2026
Meanwhile, the reinforcement learning system was trained using hundreds of millions of simulated disturbances in a virtual environment.
—Atharva Gosavi, Interesting Engineering, 3 Mar. 2026
In contrast, several weather disturbances will induce considerable cloud cover primarily over the central and eastern states.
—Joe Rao, Space.com, 2 Mar. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for disturbances
Noun
-
Over the past year, men’s ski jumping has been marred by Norway’s cheating scandal and more recent genital manipulation rumors, which has become one of the early commotions of the Milano-Cortina Games.—
Sara Germano,
Sportico.com,
8 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
Japan’s Nikkei 225 fell 5% on Monday as oil prices surged to nearly $120 a barrel, driven by Middle East war disruptions affecting global oil supplies.—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
9 Mar. 2026
-
The surge followed days of disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz, one of the world’s most important oil choke points.—
Anniek Bao,
CNBC,
9 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
The everyday realities of life under the occupation, including the hassles and harassments of bureaucratic delays and security checkpoints, can suddenly become matters of life and death.—
Justin Chang,
New Yorker,
14 Jan. 2026
Noun
-
About two couples, connected and dependent on one another, raising their kids alongside each other, facing the same turmoils, the same existential questions.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
8 Sep. 2025
-
Mayer and Strong offer a broad pop-history lesson, in which the same tensions and turmoils churn on and on in their terrible cycle throughout the decades; the only thing that’s changed are the aesthetics.—
Richard Lawson,
HollywoodReporter,
3 Sep. 2019
Noun
-
With a funky groove, ‘80s synthesizer stabs, party noises and a put-your-hands-in-the-air-wooo!—
Jem Aswad,
Variety,
4 Mar. 2026
-
Speaking in a confessional, the mom-of-six commented on the fact that her daughter Kylie thinks her home is being haunted by a ghost because of loud banging noises.—
Emma Banks,
InStyle,
4 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
Several areas in the Kansas City metro are under severe weather watches and warnings, including a tornado warning, as storms roll through the area Tuesday evening, according to the National Weather Service.—
Caroline Zimmerman,
Kansas City Star,
11 Mar. 2026
-
Officials offer up to $5,000 to residents cleaning up sewage backups after certain storms, though activists say more is needed.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
10 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Disturbances.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/disturbances. Accessed 12 Mar. 2026.
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