Synonyms for disorder
- noun
- verb
Synonyms by meaning
Noun
1. Disease — A physical or mental malfunction
disease, illness, malady, sickness, ailment, indisposition, affection, distemper, complaint
2. Disarray
disarray, disturbance, turmoil, chaos, riot, disorganization US, disorganisation UK, confusion, anarchy, bedlam, derangement, irregularity, mayhem, mess, turbulence, pandemonium, commotion, tumult, revolution, misrule, upset, distraction, clutter
Other
free-for-all, entropy, hub-bub, dyscrasy rare
Verb
1. Trouble
trouble, disturb, perturb formal, disquiet, confuse, flutter, embroil, confound, distract, unsettle, unhinge, derange, disorganize, disorganise UK, disarrange rare, discompose rare, cark dated
Other
dishevel rare
Definitions
- n. 1
A physical or mental malfunction.
Bulimia is an eating disorder.
- n. 2
Absence of order; state of not being arranged in an orderly manner.
After playing the children left the room in disorder.
- v. 1
To throw into a state of disorder.
Related words
Forms
- Plural
- disorders → diseases, illnesses, maladies, sicknesses…
- Past participle
- disordered
e.g. disordered → troubled, disturbed, perturbed, disquieted…
Choose the right word
Disease is the general term for any deviation from health; in a more limited sense it denotes some definite morbid condition; disorder and affection are rather partial and limited; as, a nervous affection; a disorder of the digestive system.
J. C. Fernald, English Synonyms and Antonyms (1914)
Example sentences
- disease Eating healthfully can help prevent heart disease.
- illness Tom attributed his failure in the exam to illness.
- sickness Her sickness, she is the only one afflicted by it.
- malady The doctor said that this malady is untreatable.
- disturbance Is this a servo or a disturbance-rejection problem?
- disarray Unexpected expenses always throw her budget into disarray.
Popularity over time
| Word | 1850 → 2019 | Trend |
|---|---|---|
| disorder | rising | |
| disease | steady | |
| illness | rising | |
| sickness | steady | |
| malady | steady | |
| disturbance | steady |
Use in printed books, per decade from 1850 to 2019.
By length
- 4 letters
- mess1, riot2, cark
- 5 letters
- upset2, chaos2
- 6 letters
- mayhem2, bedlam2, tumult2, malady3
- 7 letters
- disease2, trouble2, illness2, confuse2, disturb2, turmoil2, anarchy3, entropy3, clutter2, flutter2, ailment2, misrule2, perturb2, unhinge2
- 8 letters
- sickness2, distract2, disarray3, confound2, disquiet3, unsettle3, dyscrasy, dishevel3
- 9 letters
- complaint2, confusion3, affection3, commotion3, distemper3
- 10 letters
- revolution4, turbulence3, disarrange, discompose
- 11 letters
- distraction3, disturbance3, pandemonium5, derangement, disorganize4, disorganise
- 12 letters
- irregularity6
- 13 letters
- indisposition
- 15 letters
- disorganization6, disorganisation
The small number after each word is its number of syllables (riot2 = 2 syllables).