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per·turb

perturb

 
 
pronunciation:
pr tuhrb
features:
Word Combinations (verb), Word Parts
part of speech: transitive verb
inflections: perturbs, perturbing, perturbed
definition 1: to cause great disturbance in (the mind); agitate or worry.
His daughter's question about her mother's death perturbed him, and he couldn't understand what made her ask such a thing.
synonyms:
agitate, disturb, upset
similar words:
alarm, discompose, dismay, disquiet, exercise, fluster, jangle, jar, shake, trouble, unsettle, vex, worry
definition 2: to cause great confusion in; derange.
Waking up in a strange hospital bed perturbed the elderly man.
synonyms:
confound, derange, disorder
similar words:
bewilder, confuse, disturb, fluster, perplex, unbalance, upset
definition 3: to disturb the ordinary motion or equilibrium of.
These electrical forces can perturb the biorhythms of mice.
synonyms:
derange, upset
similar words:
disturb, jar, ruffle, trouble, unbalance, unsettle
Word CombinationsSubscriber feature About this feature
derivations: perturbable (adj.), perturbingly (adv.), perturbability (n.)
Word PartsSubscriber feature About this feature