distracted
Americanadjective
-
having the attention diverted.
She tossed several rocks to the far left and slipped past the distracted sentry.
-
rendered incapable of behaving, reacting, etc., in a normal manner, as by worry, remorse, or the like; irrational; disturbed.
adjective
-
bewildered; confused
-
mad
Other Word Forms
- distractedly adverb
- distractedness noun
- nondistracted adjective
- nondistractedly adverb
- undistracted adjective
- undistractedly adverb
- undistractedness noun
Etymology
Origin of distracted
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
But he’s wary of getting distracted from other areas of his business.
She came to visit once or twice, always at an inconvenient time, and after her distracted daughter snapped at her during finals week junior year, she didn’t try to visit again.
From Literature
“All of your teachers have said that you seem distracted, and you haven’t been to lunchtime study hall in weeks.”
From Literature
At this point, spirits were usually so distraught and distracted by their own eternal fate that they did not notice anything about him.
From Literature
For a team with everything to play for, the Kings looked distracted and disinterested.
From Los Angeles Times
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
