perturb

to disturb greatly or unsettle

Roots

  • per-: through, thoroughly, or completely
  • turb: stir, disturb, throw into disorder, or make cloudy

Other words with the turb root

  • disturb: to interrupt peace or throw into disorder
  • imperturbable: calm and not easily disturbed
  • turbid: cloudy, muddy, or confused
  • turbulent: stirred up, disorderly, or violently unsettled

Per- intensifies turb. To perturb is to stir something out of calm or order.

The unexpected graph perturbed her because it made the neat explanation look incomplete.

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