as in disturbing
causing worry or anxiety
the constant arguing is upsetting to a sensitive person like your grandmother
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
1
as in alarming
to trouble the mind of; to make uneasy
the smallest things can upset us if we're already stressed
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in overturning
to turn on one's side or upside down
the narrow boat upsets easily and should be handled with care
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in disrupting
to undo the proper order or arrangement of
the change in the bus schedule upset our daily routine
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of upsetting
Literary Hub, 15 Oct. 2025
What often brings spouses of gamblers into counseling — with or without their partner — is a big, upsetting shock.
—Jeanne Sahadi, CNN Money, 5 Oct. 2025
Ralph D. Russo, New York Times, 19 Oct. 2025
Nor can Northwestern, for that matter, after upsetting Penn State.
—Haley Sawyer, Oc Register, 17 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for upsetting
Adjective
This was, of course, upsetting.
—Literary Hub, 15 Oct. 2025
What often brings spouses of gamblers into counseling — with or without their partner — is a big, upsetting shock.
—Jeanne Sahadi, CNN Money, 5 Oct. 2025
Verb
Last year, Vandy was a fun upstart story after upsetting Alabama, while IU was the CFP interloper in Curt Cignetti’s first season with the Hoosiers.
—Ralph D. Russo, New York Times, 19 Oct. 2025
Nor can Northwestern, for that matter, after upsetting Penn State.
—Haley Sawyer, Oc Register, 17 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for upsetting
Recent Examples of Synonyms for upsetting
Adjective
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With 31 percent of adults and 80 percent of adolescents not meeting recommended levels of physical activity, researchers have unveiled a disturbing glimpse of what the long-term impacts on our health and appearance could look like.—
Hannah Millington,
MSNBC Newsweek,
31 Oct. 2025
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The film follows his lead, constructing a near-relentless study of misery that culminates in a disturbing finale.—
Shirley Li,
The Atlantic,
31 Oct. 2025
Verb
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This isn’t in itself alarming in the moment, though such a narrow market often works against the duration of an advance.—
Michael Santoli,
CNBC,
29 Oct. 2025
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In a city home to the world’s largest Jewish population outside Israel, Mamdani’s message has struck sharply different chords, galvanizing left-leaning activists while alarming many Jewish voters who view his words as inflammatory.—
Samantha-Jo Roth,
The Washington Examiner,
27 Oct. 2025
Verb
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Conservative Supreme Court Justice's Views on Obergefell Conservative Justice Clarence Thomas, joined by Justice Samuel Alito, signaled interest in reexamining past precedents like Obergefell in a concurrence with the Supreme Court's 2022 ruling overturning Roe.—
Jason Lemon,
MSNBC Newsweek,
6 Nov. 2025
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With this reasoning, the Court ruled against Scott and legalized slavery in the territories by overturning the Missouri Compromise.—
Equal Justice Initiative,
USA Today,
6 Nov. 2025
Verb
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And that crackdown is disrupting the global remittance market.—
NPR,
NPR,
29 Oct. 2025
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This prevents stray heat from disrupting the atoms’ oscillations.—
Georgina Jedikovska,
Interesting Engineering,
29 Oct. 2025
Adjective
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Rather, the Lamb baby is literally the face of a lamb and the body of a human child, which is unsettling in a wholly novel way.—
Dennis Perkins,
Entertainment Weekly,
31 Oct. 2025
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The problem is that among the general public, the optics are unsettling.—
David Hill,
Rolling Stone,
31 Oct. 2025
Verb
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Karbler notes that Bigelow resisted that depiction for fear of distracting from the emotional moment.—
Jake Kring-Schreifels,
Time,
27 Oct. 2025
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Surprisingly, the injury helped him in this regard by distracting him from overanalyzing his game.—
Devlina Sarkar,
MSNBC Newsweek,
25 Oct. 2025
Verb
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Operators of another boat happened to be on the phone with the Coast Guard checking conditions in the inlet and reported the vessel, the Moonstruck, capsizing, according to The Coastland Times.—
Abigail Adams,
PEOPLE,
20 Oct. 2025
Verb
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Perplexity’s image features photographs of people with some truly nightmarish distortions on its wall, while the placement of its sink is confusing and distracting.—
PC Magazine,
PC Magazine,
25 Oct. 2025
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This was out of respect for me, and also to avoid confusing the children.—
Judith Martin,
Mercury News,
23 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Upsetting.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/upsetting. Accessed 7 Nov. 2025.
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