disconnection

American  

[dis-kuh-nek-shuhn] / ˌdɪs kəˈnɛk ʃən /

British, disconnexion

noun

1. the act of disconnecting.

2. the state of being disconnected; lack of connection.

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Etymology

Origin of disconnection

First recorded in 1725–35; dis- ¹ + connection

Explanation

When you're detached or have lost your link to something (or someone), that's disconnection. If you live in Alaska and your family lives in Florida, you may feel a sense of disconnection. There's emotional disconnection, when you're separated from people you care about, and there's also the disconnection that occurs when a cord is unplugged or a source of energy or information is broken. This kind of disconnection happens when you lose your internet connection or your game console isn't plugged into the TV. Disconnection adds the "not" prefix dis- to connection, which comes from the Latin connexionem, "a joining together."

Example Sentences

Men’s social disconnection is the subject of Andrew McCarthy’s “Who Needs Friends,” which shines in its more unvarnished portraits of the author’s own friends.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 14, 2026

Back then, nobody could conceive of humankind being connected by machines that also facilitated our disconnection from each other.

From Salon • Mar. 26, 2026

Moldova's government condemned the strike on energy infrastructure in the Odesa region, which led to the disconnection of the Isaccea-Vulcanesti power line, used by Moldova to import electricity from neighbouring Romania.

From BBC • Mar. 24, 2026

The "total disconnection" of the national electricity system was due to an outage in a power unit at one of the country's thermoelectric plants, causing a "cascading effect", the state-owned Cuban Electric Union said.

From Barron's • Mar. 21, 2026

Somehow, Jesse had escaped that degree of anger and disconnection.

From "Geeks: How Two Lost Boys Rode the Internet Out of Idaho" by Jon Katz