DISTURB

v. 1 interrupt, disrupt, intrude (on), inconvenience, put out, interfere (with); bother, pester, annoy, irritate, irk, upset, plague, hector, harry, harass, worry, vex, provoke, pique, peeve, get on (someone's) nerves, Colloq bug, miff, get under (someone's) skin, get in (someone's) hair, drive nuts or crazy or bats or batty or bananas or up the wall, hassle The sound of dripping water disturbed me Please do not disturb the animals. 2 agitate, stir or churn (up), shake (up), unsettle, roil, disorder The lake's surface was violently disturbed by an enormous creature 3 unsettle, affect, upset, damage, harm, destroy We put the delicate mechanism where it wouldn't be disturbed by curious visitors 4 trouble, disconcert, discomfit, perturb, ruffle, fluster, upset, agitate, put off, bother, discommode, put out, unsettle, distress; alarm, Colloq shake (up) He was greatly disturbed by the death of his father 5 affect, upset, confound, confuse, change, put off, ruin, destroy, cancel, make ineffectual or ineffective, negate Any change in temperature will disturb the results of the experiment