to disorient

Examples

• All

• I'll use stealth mode to disorient them.

  Lightyear (2022)

• An apparent increase in the population of part-Japanese children marked the war's disorienting effect on Nisei Californians.

  Academic text (2003)

• I guess it must be, uh, disorienting for them.

  First Man (2018)

• He'll be disoriented at first.

  Black Adam (2022)

• Time travel can be disorienting.

  Predestination (2014)

• The surgery lasted nearly three hours, and Reagan was noted to be disoriented upon awakening from the operation.

  Academic text (2014)

• Beth wonders if she will faint, disoriented as she is by the palpable faith of the group.

  Fiction book (1992)

• Atom is stumbling around the ring, apparently disoriented and dazed!

  Real Steel (2011)

• The woman nodded vaguely, disoriented by the noise, concentrating on her drink, unaware of what was happening.

  Fiction book (2002)

• If separation from the familiar world is disorienting, the simultaneous stripping of self-identity must be particularly distressing.

  Academic text (1993)

Synonyms

C

to confuse

vsto disorient

152 1.9

Make someone unable to think clearly or make something hard to understand

specifically causes losing sense of place or direction rather than vague confusion

B

to baffle

vsto disorient

25 5.3

To make someone very confused and unable to understand

causes physical loss of direction rather than intellectual puzzlement

U

to unsettle

vsto disorient

20 4.9

To make someone feel worried or uneasy

produces confusion about location or direction rather than general anxiety

C

to confound

vsto disorient

20 7.0

Make someone unable to think clearly

makes people lose their sense of place or direction not just clarity

M

to mystify

vsto disorient

11 6.5

To make someone confused by making something seem mysterious

results in losing sense of direction or place rather than mystery

T

to throw off balance

vsto disorient

10 5.4

To make someone feel confused or unsure after a sudden change

leads to losing sense of where to go rather than only upset feelings

M

to make head spin

vsto disorient

• Informal

9 7.4

To cause someone to feel confused or overwhelmed by too much information

focuses more on losing sense of place rather than only dizzy confusion

P

to perplex

vsto disorient

6 6.3

To make someone confused and unable to understand

creates loss of spatial orientation rather than only intellectual difficulty

B

to befuddle

vsto disorient

4 7.8

To make someone very confused so they cannot think clearly

affects spatial orientation and direction rather than only mental muddle

F

to fluster

vsto disorient

3 5.5

To make someone nervous so they cannot think clearly

causes loss of directional sense rather than primarily nervousness

B

to bewilder

vsto disorient

3 5.3

Make someone very confused and unable to think clearly

causes being unsure where to go or what to do physically

D

to disorientate

vsto disorient

• UK

3 5.7

To make someone lose their sense of direction or feel confused

is the alternative form used in other varieties of English

D

to dizzy

vsto disorient

3 2.8

To make someone feel unsteady and as if the room is turning

creates confusion about location or direction rather than just imbalance

D

to discomfit

vsto disorient

• Formal

2 8.4

To make someone feel uncomfortable, confused, or embarrassed

causes spatial confusion about where they are or should go

D

to discombobulate

vsto disorient

• Informal

2 9.9

To confuse someone so they cannot think clearly

specifically causes loss of directional sense rather than general bewilderment

A

to addle

vsto disorient

2 8.9

To make a person confused and unable to think clearly

creates disorientation about place or direction rather than mere muddle

F

to flummox

vsto disorient

2 8.6

To confuse someone so they do not know what to do or think

causes physical disorientation about location rather than total bewilderment

F

to fuddle

vsto disorient

1 9.4

To confuse someone and make them unable to think clearly

creates spatial disorientation rather than only mental muddling

N

to nonplus

vsto disorient

1 9.4

Surprise and confuse a person so they do not know what to do

leads to disorientation about position or direction rather than only reaction uncertainty

Antonyms

G

to guide

260 1.0

To show someone the way by going with them

O

to orient

8 4.2

To help someone learn about a new place, job, or system

How Confusing

to bewilder

3 5.3

to disorient

7 5.2

to perplex

6 6.3

to confuse

152 1.9

Surface Forms

Morphology

Etymology