disturbance

/dɪˈstɜː.bəns/

//dɪˈstɜː.bəns// noun

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

"disturbance" is a 11-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“disturbance” has 18 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #12,758. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#12,758
frequency rank, English
3,470
“D” headwords
18
tracked misspellings

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - The act of disturbing, being disturbed.

Corpus desk

Index EN-disturbance · disturbance · English

disturbance · rank #12,758 · 18 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #12,758
  • LEN-MEGA 11 letters
  • VOW-4 4 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-HIGH 18 variants
  • BOOK-MID 3,470
  • PHOTO-FINISH dissolution

Nearest frequency peer: dissolution (-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 “disturbance”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “disturbance” 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
Key facts for disturbance
PropertyValue
Headworddisturbance
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/dɪˈstɜː.bəns/
Letters11
Frequency rank#12,758
Misspellings tracked18
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “disturbance”

Word frequency stretches from the small set of words we reach for constantly (left) out to the long tail barely used once in a while (right).disturbancelands here:

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

Ticks step logarithmically, so each one marks a roughly tenfold drop in how often the word turns up. Same rarity band neighbours include “dissolution” (#12,757), “dog's” (#12,759), “Dominic” (#12,760). Among 3,470 “D” headwords, “disturbance” is #12,758. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 18 spelling variants around disturbance (IPA /dɪˈstɜː.bəns/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #12,758 among 3,470 “D” headwords. Wiktionary lists 5 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 18 likely wrong-spelling variants for disturbance, with forms such as "ddisturbance", "dissturbance", and "distrubance". 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. This headword has no recorded confusable partner, which tends to mean the word is visually distinctive enough to stand on its own.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English disturbaunce, from Old French destorbance, destourbance, from destourber (“disturb”), from Latin disturbō. By surface analysis, disturb + -ance. The correct English form is disturbance, spelled D-I-S-T-U-R-B-A-N-C-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    The act of disturbing, being disturbed.
  2. 2
    Something that disturbs.
  3. 3
    A noisy commotion that causes a hubbub or interruption.
  4. 4
    An interruption of that which is normal or regular.
  5. 5
    A serious mental imbalance or illness.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. That guy causes a lot of trouble, you know, he’s such a disturbance.
  2. Phoenix and Lubbock are both caught in severe drought, and it is going to get much worse. We may see many such [dust] storms in the decades ahead, along with species extinctions, radical disturbance of ecosystems, and intensified social conflict over land and water. Welcome to the Anthropocene, the epoch when humans have become a major geological and clim…

Etymology

From Middle English disturbaunce, from Old French destorbance, destourbance, from destourber (“disturb”), from Latin disturbō. By surface analysis, disturb + -ance.

Antonyms

calmnessrumpus

This word in other languages

disturbio(Español)trouble(Français)Störung(Deutsch)estorvo(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • ddisturbance
  • dissturbance
  • distrubance
  • distturbance
  • distubrance
  • disturabnce
  • disturbacne
  • disturbancce
  • disturbanec
  • disturbannce
  • disturbbance
  • disturbence
  • disturbnace
  • disturrbance
  • disutrbance
  • ditsurbance
  • dsiturbance
  • idsturbance

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of disturbance - 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.

ddisturbance1dissturbance1distrubance2distturbance1distubrance2disturabnce2disturbacne2disturbancce1
Edit distance from "disturbance"

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 "disturbance"?
"disturbance" is spelled D-I-S-T-U-R-B-A-N-C-E. The IPA pronunciation is /dɪˈstɜː.bəns/.
What does "disturbance" mean?
As a noun, "disturbance" means: The act of disturbing, being disturbed.
What are common misspellings of "disturbance"?
Common misspellings include "ddisturbance", "dissturbance", "distrubance", "distturbance", "distubrance". The correct spelling is "disturbance".
How do you pronounce "disturbance"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "disturbance" is /dɪˈstɜː.bəns/. 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 "disturbance"?
From Middle English disturbaunce, from Old French destorbance, destourbance, from destourber (“disturb”), from Latin disturbō. By surface analysis, disturb + -ance. 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 "disturbance", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 11 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

dissolution#12,757evangelical#12,765informative#12,793yesterday's#12,719

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (18 here; floor ≥5).

refrigerator18 variantsregeneration18 variantsremembrance18 variantsauthenticity18 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list