distract
Americanverb (used with object)
-
to draw away or divert, as the mind or attention.
The music distracted him from his work.
-
to disturb or trouble greatly in mind; beset.
Grief distracted him.
-
to provide a pleasant diversion for; amuse; entertain.
I'm bored with bridge, but golf still distracts me.
-
to separate or divide by dissension or strife.
adjective
verb
-
(often passive) to draw the attention of (a person) away from something
-
to divide or confuse the attention of (a person)
-
to amuse or entertain
-
to trouble greatly
-
to make mad
Other Word Forms
- distracter noun
- distractibility noun
- distractible adjective
- distracting adjective
- distractingly adverb
- distractive adjective
- distractively adverb
- nondistracting adjective
- nondistractingly adverb
- undistracting adjective
- undistractingly adverb
Etymology
Origin of distract
First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English, from Latin distractus “drawn apart,” past participle of distrahere “to draw apart,” from dis- dis- 1 + trahere “to draw”
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.
These can detect when drivers are distracted, if you’re hard braking and rapidly accelerating or if you’re often driving late at night — all things which signal to insurance companies that you might be a liability.
From MarketWatch
Slight variations can be enough to put you off the scent because they distract you for a few moments, which is all it takes to achieve their aim.
From MarketWatch
“He’s trying to distract us from the big stories of last week, which were the Epstein files and then the economy,” she said.
From Salon
This included making sure "you don't get distracted when you're cooking" and "take pans off the heat, or turn the heat down, if you need to leave the kitchen".
From BBC
They were busy, distracted, packing for a trip on Epstein’s plane.
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.
