dislocation

American  

[dis-loh-kay-shuhn] / ˌdɪs loʊˈkeɪ ʃən /

noun

• dislocations
  plural

1. an act or instance of dislocating.

2. the state of being dislocated.

3. Crystallography. (in a crystal lattice) a line about which there is a discontinuity in the lattice structure.

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dislocation British  

/ ˌdɪsləˈkeɪʃən /

noun

1. the act of displacing or the state of being displaced; disruption

2. (esp of the bones in a joint) the state or condition of being dislocated

3. a line, plane, or region in which there is a discontinuity in the regularity of a crystal lattice

4. geology a less common word for fault

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• dislocations
  plural

Etymology

Origin of dislocation

1350–1400; Middle English dislocacioun; see dislocate, -ion

Compare meaning

How does dislocation compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:

• subluxation vs. dislocation

Explanation

Abruptly moving something (or someone) out of its usual place is dislocation. Cutting down the oak tree in your back yard will cause the dislocation of the birds that always build their nests in it. The word dislocation has several different meanings, but they all have something to do with displacement, moving something from its proper place. A joint dislocation happens when a bone is moved (painfully) out of its normal spot: "A common trampoline injury is elbow dislocation." Human dislocation can occur during war, or after a natural disaster forces people to move away from their homes. The Latin root is dislocare, "put out of place."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

dislocation dislocations

But there was still time for resident villain Horwood to direct a jibe at broadcaster Will Best's hip action: "Call in the paramedics darling, dislocation - my goodness."

From BBC ● Sep. 19, 2026

Maddie and Avery moved back from New York to help out as their mother tried to keep Little Flower going while dealing with dislocation and a nightmarish battle with her insurance company.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 1, 2026

“We believe this dislocation marks the most compelling entry point into the sector in a generation,” Wedbush said, pointing to potential growth drivers such as the U.S.

From MarketWatch ● Jul. 1, 2026

The way their vocals are processed, it often seems like they are recording in a room somewhere far away from where the instruments are being played, which reinforces the songs’ sense of dislocation.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 30, 2026

A falling away, a dislocation was taking place.

From "Sula" by Toni Morrison

These vectors amplify market dislocations as multiple participants simultaneously unwind positions.

From MarketWatch ● Sep. 23, 2026

He said the firm is seeing dislocations in industrial and transportation companies in particular.

From MarketWatch ● Sep. 10, 2026

"We directly introduced dislocations in CoAl during sputtering deposition," Zhang said.

From Science Daily ● Jul. 31, 2026

Glencore had guided to the unit’s performance normalizing in the second half of the year but there is clearly upside given that energy market dislocations continue, LaFemina writes.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 29, 2026

Frank saw that the paradox vanished if crystals were not as regular as suspected, but contained dislocations resulting in the perpetual presence of cozy corners into which new molecules could fit.

From "Double Helix" by James D. Watson

Related Words

• confusion
• disarray
• disconnection
• disorder
• disruption
• disturbance