disturb

/dɪˈstɜːb/

//dɪˈstɜːb// verb

By · According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA) ·

"disturb" is a 7-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“disturb” has 11 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #13,703. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#13,703
frequency rank, English
3,470
“D” headwords
11
tracked misspellings
2
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - to confuse a quiet, constant state or a calm, continuous flow, in particular: thoughts, actions or liquids.

Corpus desk

Index EN-disturb · disturb · English

disturb · rank #13,703 · 11 variants · 2 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #13,703
  • LEN-LONG 7 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-LOW 2 pairs
  • VAR-MID 11 variants
  • BOOK-MID 3,470
  • PHOTO-FINISH dissent

Nearest frequency peer: dissent (-1 rank slots)

Read with this headword: Spelling guide for this pattern

Desk codes from Wiktionary headword shape, FrequencyWords rank tier, confusable-pair count, generated misspelling depth, letter-cohort book size, and photo-finish peer. Not a difficulty grade.

Rank peers near misspelling magnet “disturb”

Same rarity band: useful when a typo lands on a peer headword

corpus weight

What this shows “disturb” sits among these FrequencyWords peers; misspelling depth is tracked separately in the edit-distance chart.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).

disturb vs disturbed
78% similar
disturb vs distort
71% similar

Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).

Key facts for disturb
PropertyValue
Headworddisturb
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechVerb
IPA/dɪˈstɜːb/
Letters7
Frequency rank#13,703
Misspellings tracked11
Confusable pairs2
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “disturb”

This scale runs from the tiny cluster of words that carry ordinary speech (left) to the long tail of words almost nobody reaches for (right).disturblands here:

#1#100#1K#10K#100K
← used constantlyrarely used →

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Same rarity band neighbours include “dissent” (#13,702), “docks” (#13,704), “disguised” (#13,701). Among 3,470 “D” headwords, “disturb” is #13,703. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 11 spelling variants around disturb (IPA /dɪˈstɜːb/), averb. Corpus frequency is #13,703 among 3,470 “D” headwords. Wiktionary lists 3 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 11 likely wrong-spelling variants for disturb, with forms such as "ddisturb", "dissturb", and "distrub". Each variant is a distinct typo pattern an edit-distance generator flags, typically a doubled-consonant error, a silent-letter drop, or a vowel substitution. It also participates in 2 confusable-pair relationships, "disturbed", "distort", a pairing that trips writers up because the two words share enough sound or shape to blur together.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English destourben, from Anglo-Norman distourber and Old French destorber, from Latin disturbare, intensifying for turbare (“to throw into disorder”), ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *(s)twerH-, *(s)turH- (“to rotate, swirl, twirl, move arou… The correct English form is disturb, spelled D-I-S-T-U-R-B.

Definition

  1. 1
    to confuse a quiet, constant state or a calm, continuous flow, in particular: thoughts, actions or liquids.
  2. 2
    to divert, redirect, or alter by disturbing.
  3. 3
    to have a negative emotional impact; to cause emotional distress or confusion.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

These source excerpts show how disturb appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.

  1. The noisy ventilation disturbed me during the exam.
  2. The performance was disturbed twice by a ringing mobile phone.

Etymology

From Middle English destourben, from Anglo-Norman distourber and Old French destorber, from Latin disturbare, intensifying for turbare (“to throw into disorder”), ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *(s)twerH-, *(s)turH- (“to rotate, swirl, twirl, move around”).

Synonyms

upset

This word in other languages

molestar(Español)déranger(Français)stören(Deutsch)perturbar(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • ddisturb
  • dissturb
  • distrub
  • distturb
  • distubr
  • disturbb
  • disturrb
  • disutrb
  • ditsurb
  • dsiturb
  • idsturb

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of disturb - expressed in single-character edits (insert, delete, or swap one letter). Bigger bars stand out at a glance; a one-edit slip is the hardest to catch.

ddisturb1dissturb1distrub2distturb1distubr2disturbb1disturrb1disutrb2
Edit distance from "disturb"

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA); frequency ordering uses the FrequencyWords open word-frequency list (2018 English corpus, MIT). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "disturb"?
"disturb" is spelled D-I-S-T-U-R-B. The IPA pronunciation is /dɪˈstɜːb/.
What does "disturb" mean?
As a verb, "disturb" means: to confuse a quiet, constant state or a calm, continuous flow, in particular: thoughts, actions or liquids.
What words are commonly confused with "disturb"?
"disturb" is commonly confused with "disturbed", "distort". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "disturb"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "disturb" is /dɪˈstɜːb/. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What is the origin of the word "disturb"?
From Middle English destourben, from Anglo-Norman distourber and Old French destorber, from Latin disturbare, intensifying for turbare (“to throw into disorder”), ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *(s)twerH-, *(s)turH- (“to rotate, swirl, twirl,... See the full etymology section above for more details.
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Yes, PlainSpell is a completely free word reference. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, confusable pairs, homophones, and spelling corrections across 5 languages without any sign-up or subscription.

Similar English words by spelling shape

Same letter count and similar misspelling depth for "disturb", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 7 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

dissent#13,702eminent#13,708craving#13,694convict#13,693

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (11 here; floor ≥5).

discrete11 variantsendeavor11 variantscontend11 variantsfencing11 variants

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list