disturbance of the peace
- noun
- /dɪˈstɜːrbəns əv ðə piːs/
- Formal
- The abrupt shouting during the quiet evening was considered a serious disturbance of the peace.
Examples
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The neighbors complained about the loud music, calling it a disturbance of the peace.
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After the fight broke out, the police intervened to address the disturbance of the peace in the park.
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A slight disturbance of the peace Has been reported.
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The local police took immediate measures against this disturbance of the peace and closed off the mountain where the apparitions took place.
Academic text (1990) -
But sometimes, as in the case of Israel David Gutman's "disturbance of the peace at the Bima reader's desk on the Sabbath," the delays and indignities caused by the calling out of donations led to quarrels among worshippers.
Academic text (1990)
Synonyms
A noisy event in a public place that bothers other people
Behavior that disturbs people in public and may be illegal
Something that harms or annoys many people in an area
An action that makes people in public feel unsafe or upset
Actions in public that disturb other people or cause trouble
A sudden violent crowd event that causes confusion and danger
Antonyms
How Disruptive
Surface Forms
Morphology
disturbance + of + the + peace
The core meaning 'an act interrupting public order' is directly derivable from combining 'disturbance' (a disruption) with 'peace' (public tranquility) using the common 'X of the Y' noun phrase pattern. This composition is cross-linguistically regular and predictable, so a B1 learner who knows the constituent words would grasp the basic sense, even if they might not infer the precise legal classification as a minor offense.
Etymology
Disturbance of the peace comes from the image of a calm street or room, the peace, being broken by loud noise or a fight, the disturbance. So it means doing something that interrupts 'public order' and can be a 'minor offense'.