perturb

English

Etymology

From Middle English perturben, from Old French perturber, from Latin perturbare (“throw into confusion, confuse, disorder, disturb”), from per (“through”) + turbare (“to confuse, disturb”).

Pronunciation

• (General American) IPA^(key): /pɚˈtɝb/

• Audio (US):

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ɜː(ɹ)b

Verb

perturb (third-person singular simple present perturbs, present participle perturbing, simple past and past participle perturbed)

1. To disturb; to bother or unsettle.

   Synonyms: agitate, unsettle; see also Thesaurus:upset

2. (physics) To slightly modify the motion of an object.
3. (astronomy) To modify the motion of a body by exerting a gravitational force.
4. (mathematics) To modify slightly, such as an equation or value.

Derived terms

• perturbation
• perturbative
• perturbed
• perturbedly

 

Translations

to disturb; to bother or unsettle

• Armenian: խռովել (hy) (xṙovel)
• Bulgarian: смущавам (bg) (smuštavam)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 打擾／打扰 (zh) (dǎrǎo)

• Dutch: verstoren (nl)
• Ido: perturbar (io)
• Irish: buair
• Norwegian: forurolige, vekke uro (no) m, gjøre forstyrret, skake (opp), ryste (no)
• Spanish: perturbar (es), desatentar (es), conturbar (es)

(physics) to slightly modify the motion of an object

(astronomy) To modify the motion of a body by exerting a gravitational force

• Ido: perturbar (io)

(math) To modify slightly, such as an equation or value

Further reading

• “perturb”, in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: G. & C. Merriam, 1913, →OCLC.
• “perturb”, in The Century Dictionary […], New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911, →OCLC.
• “perturb”, in OneLook Dictionary Search.

Romanian

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [perˈturb]

Verb

perturb

1. first-person singular present indicative/subjunctive of perturba