Meaning of DISTRACT
| Pronunciation: | | di'strakt
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 WordNet Dictionary |
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| | Definition: | |
- [v] disturb in mind or make uneasy or cause to be worried or alarmed; "She was rather perturbed by the news that her father was seriously ill"
- [v] draw someone's attention away from something; "The thief distracted the bystanders"; "He deflected his competitors"
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| | Synonyms: | | cark, deflect, disorder, disquiet, perturb, trouble, unhinge |
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| | See Also: | | confuse, disconcert, disturb, flurry, put off, upset, vex, worry | |
| Webster's 1913 Dictionary |
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| | Definition: | |
\Dis*tract"\, a. [L. distractus, p. p. of distrahere to
draw asunder; dis- + trahere to draw. See {Trace}, and cf.
{Distraught}.]
1. Separated; drawn asunder. [Obs.]
2. Insane; mad. [Obs.] --Drayton.
\Dis*tract"\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. {Distracted}, old p.
p. {Distraught}; p. pr. & vb. n. {Distracting}.]
1. To draw apart or away; to divide; to disjoin.
A city . . . distracted from itself. --Fuller.
2. To draw (the sight, mind, or attention) in different
directions; to perplex; to confuse; as, to distract the
eye; to distract the attention.
Mixed metaphors . . . distract the imagination.
--Goldsmith.
3. To agitate by conflicting passions, or by a variety of
motives or of cares; to confound; to harass.
Horror and doubt distract His troubled thoughts.
--Milton.
4. To unsettle the reason of; to render insane; to craze; to
madden; -- most frequently used in the participle,
distracted.
A poor mad soul; . . . poverty hath distracted her.
--Shak.
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| Thesaurus Terms |
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| | Related Terms: | | absorb, addle, agitate, amuse, ball up, befuddle, beguile, bemuse, bewilder, blunt, bother, bug, call away, chill, confound, confuse, convulse, cool, craze, damp, dampen, daze, deflect, delight, dement, derange, deter, detract, detract attention, disaffect, discompose, disconcert, discourage, disincline, disinterest, disturb, divert, divert the mind, drive insane, drive mad, embroil, engross, entertain, fluster, frenzy, fuddle, gratify, indispose, interest, mad, madden, make mad, mix up, mystify, occupy, perplex, perturb, psych, put off, puzzle, quench, rattle, repel, send mad, shatter, sidetrack, spook, throw, throw into confusion, throw off, trouble, turn aside, turn away, turn from, turn off, unbalance, unhinge, unsettle, upset, wean from |
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