noun
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violent disturbance; upheaval
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political insurrection; disorder
-
a confused noise; din
Related Words
See ado.
Other Word Forms
- commotional adjective
- commotive adjective
Etymology
Origin of commotion
First recorded in 1520–30; from Latin commōtiōn-, stem of commōtiō, from commōt(us) “disturbed” (past participle of commovēre “to displace, disturb,” literally, “to move together”; commove ) + -iō -ion
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.
“It’s true that these young people are at the bursting point. This afternoon they were making such a commotion I could hear them down on the street.”
From Literature
The commotion began when the referee awarded a penalty to Morocco in the 88th minute with the contest tied at 0-0 in Rabat.
We had grown used to the commotion of the trains passing right through our neighborhood, stepped aside to let the railcars pass, let them clatter and whistle through our dreams.
From Literature
But, moments later, I heard a commotion behind us and turned to see what was happening.
From Literature
Outside the banquet hall after the Paxton event had ended, Paul Barbieri and a friend stood by their pickup truck wondering what all the commotion had been about.
From BBC
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.
