as in to disrupt
to undo the proper order or arrangement of
his grandfather would always tousle the boy's neatly combed hair
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
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 tousle
The Kylie Skin founder winked at the camera and shared a pout before shaking her head from side to side and tousling her hair.
—
Jenny Haward, Peoplemag, 6 Apr. 2024
To round out all the looks, model Precious Lee wore her hair tousled into an updo, with just a touch of lip gloss to end the week.
—India Espy-Jones, Essence, 2 Feb. 2024
The waves weren't precise or uniform in shape, but rather looked as though they'd been styled with a three-barrel iron, then roughed up and tousled for an undone finish.
—Kara Nesvig, Allure, 25 Jan. 2024
For that morning’s scene, her light-auburn hair had been artfully curled and tousled by her longtime hairdresser, Frédéric Souquet.
—Rebecca Mead, The New Yorker, 6 Dec. 2023
See All Example Sentences for tousle
Jenny Haward, Peoplemag, 6 Apr. 2024
To round out all the looks, model Precious Lee wore her hair tousled into an updo, with just a touch of lip gloss to end the week.
—India Espy-Jones, Essence, 2 Feb. 2024
The waves weren't precise or uniform in shape, but rather looked as though they'd been styled with a three-barrel iron, then roughed up and tousled for an undone finish.
—Kara Nesvig, Allure, 25 Jan. 2024
For that morning’s scene, her light-auburn hair had been artfully curled and tousled by her longtime hairdresser, Frédéric Souquet.
—Rebecca Mead, The New Yorker, 6 Dec. 2023
See All Example Sentences for tousle
Recent Examples of Synonyms for tousle
Verb
-
The earthquake disrupted the World Series and damaged the Bay Bridge, Oakland’s Cypress Freeway, and swaths of San Francisco.—
Terry Collins,
USA Today,
8 June 2025
-
The strict licensing system has significantly disrupted the global supplies of these materials and triggered production turmoil across industries in America and Europe, raising alarms among officials and businesses alike.—
Nectar Gan,
CNN Money,
7 June 2025
Verb
-
The Discovery+ streaming service will be shuffled into the Global Networks company.—
Stephen Battaglio,
Los Angeles Times,
9 June 2025
-
Instead, set aside time each week to sort through each piece of paper (rather than picking it up and shuffling it around multiple times per week!).—
Mary Cornetta,
Better Homes & Gardens,
7 June 2025
Verb
-
Create Do-Not-Disturb Prompts To Discourage Interruptions Experiment with reducing your availability to interruptions by following specific practices that signal to others you shouldn’t be disturbed.—
Caroline Ceniza-Levine,
Forbes.com,
31 May 2025
-
Perhaps your time off request isn’t approved, or your vacation plans have been disturbed by your colleagues.—
Liz Simmons,
StyleCaster,
27 May 2025
Verb
-
The measures are set to take effect on Monday and have left many Haitians confused.—
Jacqueline Charles,
Miami Herald,
6 June 2025
-
Elections and Certifications Don’t confuse a benefit or B corporation with a B Corp.—
Kelly Phillips Erb,
Forbes.com,
6 June 2025
Cite this Entry
“Tousle.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/tousle. Accessed 15 Jun. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share