unhinging

verb

present participle of unhinge
1
as in disturbing
to cause to go insane or as if insane the endless harassment by the guards completely unhinged the prisoners of war

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in alarming
to trouble the mind of; to make uneasy I was momentarily unhinged by the unexpected question

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 unhinging Burmese pythons, which can engulf an entire Presidential golfing party simply by unhinging their (the pythons’) jaws, inhabit the environs of the Gulf of Mexico, and have even been seen swimming offshore. — Ian Frazier, New Yorker, 8 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for unhinging
  1. disturbing
  2. alarming
  3. deranging
  4. distracting
  5. unbalancing
  6. bothering
  7. unsettling
  8. concerning
Verb
  • Plus, Bluetooth headphone pairing lets students watch TV late at night without disturbing roommates.
    — Juhi Wadia, PC Magazine, 22 July 2026
  • Just like us, most plants suffer from heat stress that is exacerbated by disturbing their vascular system during a heat wave.
    — Mary Marlowe Leverette, Southern Living, 17 July 2026
Definition of disturbing
Verb
  • In Orange County, the Florida Department of Health in Orange County maintains infectious-disease surveillance and disease-reporting services for residents and visitors, which is exactly how local systems stay ready without alarming the public.
    — Luis E. Caso Vega, The Orlando Sentinel, 18 July 2026
  • So, even just the unusual presence of an aircraft in this area made this incident alarming for one resident, Anna, who spoke to CNN near the scene.
    — Steven Jiang, CNN Money, 26 June 2026
Definition of alarming
Verb
  • Instagram demanded a certain sort of woman and then produced her, deranging broad swaths of the population in the process.
    — Jia Tolentino, New Yorker, 11 July 2026
  • Gabriel going missing proves to be deranging to Caroline, and the novel becomes increasingly deranged with her.
    — John Warner, Chicago Tribune, 7 Mar. 2026
Definition of deranging
Verb
  • Freeland resembles Dorothy from the Wizard of Oz, drawing back the curtain that hides the smoke machine when the Wizard of Oz is not a wizard at all, but a carnival illusionist distracting the population.
    — Jeffrey Sonnenfeld, Fortune, 22 July 2026
  • Depicting that dress faithfully would likely be distracting to a modern audience and leave the film unmarketable.
    — Harrison Jacobs, ARTnews.com, 22 July 2026
Definition of distracting
Verb
  • The risk is that only a handful of clubs will be able to cough up those sums, unbalancing the market.
    — Charlotte Harpur, New York Times, 19 May 2026
Definition of unbalancing
Verb
  • Wasps are generally more interested in building their colony and finding food than in bothering people.
    — Jessica Safavimehr, Southern Living, 17 July 2026
  • But after going ahead, England manager Thomas Tuchel tried to shut the back door by throwing on countless defenders and not bothering to attack Argentina anymore.
    — Aleks Klosok, CNN Money, 15 July 2026
Definition of bothering
Verb
  • When an accident brings the enigmatic Gaia into their lives, unexpected desires begin to take shape, unsettling the careful balance that has long defined their relationship.
    — Melanie Goodfellow, Deadline, 9 July 2026
  • The paper shared the accounts of three women who had dated Platner within the past fifteen years and had found his behavior unsettling.
    — Jon Allsop, New Yorker, 7 July 2026
Definition of unsettling
Verb
  • This is especially concerning, considering teenagers are at a time in life when their bodies are changing constantly and rapidly, Mann said.
    — Avni Trivedi, CNN Money, 21 July 2026
  • But new data points to a concerning trend in which AI is damaging human connection, because people don’t interact with colleagues as much, rely on coworkers or reinforce relationships in the work process.
    — Tracy Brower, Forbes.com, 20 July 2026
Definition of concerning

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unhinges
unhinging
unhip
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Cite this Entry

“Unhinging.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/unhinging. Accessed 26 Jul. 2026.

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Nglish: Translation of unhinging for Spanish Speakers

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