Word family noun disturbance adjective disturbed ≠ undisturbed disturbing verb disturb adverb disturbingly
From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishdisturbdis‧turb /dɪˈstɜːb $ -ɜːrb/ ●●○ W3 verb [transitive] 1 interruptDISTURB to interrupt someone so that they cannot continue what they are doing Sorry to disturb you, but I have an urgent message. The thieves fled when they were disturbed by a neighbour. Do not disturb (=a sign you put on a door so that people will not interrupt you).2 worryWORRIED to make someone feel worried or upset What disturbs you most about this latest development?3 moveMOVE something OR somebody to move something or change its position If you find a bird’s nest, never disturb the eggs. I promise not to disturb anything.4 change to change a normal situation in a way that causes problems My hormone balance is disturbed by my pregnancy. New procedures often disturb the comfortable habits of the workforce.5 → disturb the peaceCOLLOCATIONSnounsdisturb somebody's sleepLocal people said their sleep was being disturbed by the noise from the aircraft.disturb somebody's concentrationI couldn't work with the kids around disturbing my concentration.disturb somebody's thoughtsA gentle knock on the door disturbed his thoughts.phrasessorry to disturb you spoken (=said to apologize for interrupting what someone is doing)Sorry to disturb you, but could you sign this letter, please? → See Verb tableExamples from the Corpus
disturb• Before closing the door to his office, he told his secretary that he was not to be disturbed.• It is thought that the intruder was disturbed by a barking dog.• Marquez concluded that the generally disturbed conditions were conducive to his plan.• I got undressed in the bathroom to avoid disturbing her.• Terris does not seem to mind the electricians who undoubtedly disturb him on his preserve.• Dash had looked up from his phone one day and seen a growing bureaucracy, and it disturbed him.• The high rate of teenage pregnancy disturbs me a great deal.• Please avoid disturbing me during the day unless it's an emergency.• These injuries disturb me, for they indicate that some unorthodox methods were being tried.• The global health scene has been characterised by major steps forward but with some disturbing retrograde features.• Cutting down rainforests disturbs the Earth's balance.• When drying the flowers, be careful not to disturb the petals.• Loud frogs are disturbing the sleep of local home owners.• The study also showed a disturbing trend in another area: hours worked.• Sorry to disturb you, but could I ask a quick question?• I hope my snoring won't disturb you too much.• Try not to disturb your dad - he's working.Do not disturb• External lighting is permitted, but make sure the intensity and direction don't disturb others.• To continue, just lay a plank to kneel on, so that you don't disturb the last rows of bricks.• You would be unlucky not to see shark, but these are no problem if you don't disturb them.• Do not disturb nesting birds or other wildlife.• Do not disturb the adult at this stage.• It is imperative that you do not disturb the meat layer which has formed at the top of the soup. 6.• Do not disturb this sleep unless there are other indications that the child is not sleeping a peaceful, healing sleep.disturb anything• They didn't wreck anything, they hardly disturbed anything, but they examined everything.• I was careful not to disturb anything else.Origin disturb (1100-1200) Old French destourber, from Latin turbare “to put into disorder” 