disorient

[ dis-awr-ee-ent, -ohr- ]

verb (used with object)

1. to cause to lose one's way:

   The strange streets disoriented him.

2. to confuse by removing or obscuring something that has guided a person, group, or culture, as customs, moral standards, etc.:

   Society has been disoriented by changing values.

3. Psychiatry. to cause to lose perception of time, place, or one's personal identity.

Word History and Origins

Origin of disorient¹

1645–55; < French désorienter, equivalent to dés- dis- ¹ + orienter to orient

Example Sentences

Like Trump, he has a special zeal for attacking hardworking schoolteachers, claiming teachers who do not have biological children "disorient and really disturb" him.

From Salon

Flash bangs - explosives designed to disorient people - and flares then erupted overhead, and many protesters fled the scene while members of the media scrambled for cover.

From BBC

Participants in full kit first workout on treadmill climbers and other gym machines, then crawl through the maze as strobe lights, smoke and loud noises are added to disorient them.

From Seattle Times

In the last barrage, Russia launched 22 missiles simultaneously to swarm and disorient those defenses, Syniehubov said.

From Seattle Times

The commander, known on the battlefield as Oleksandr, flips a switch to activate the jammer which interferes with the drone’s radar; it’s the equivalent of shining a bright light in someone’s eye to disorient them.

From Seattle Times

Related Words

• amaze
• astonish
• baffle
• befuddle
• bemuse
• complicate
• confound
• daze
• demoralize
• disconcert
• distract
• embarrass
• fluster
• frustrate
• involve
• misinform
• mislead
• mortify
• muddle
• mystify