disruptive

[ dis-ruhp-tiv ]

/ dɪsˈrʌp tɪv /

SEE SYNONYMS FOR disruptive ON THESAURUS.COM

adjective

causing, tending to cause, or caused by disruption; disrupting: the disruptive effect of their rioting.

Business.

relating to or noting a new product, service, or idea that radically changes an industry or business strategy, especially by creating a new market and disrupting an existing one: disruptive innovations such as the cell phone and the two-year community college.
relating to or noting a business executive or company that introduces or is receptive to such innovation: disruptive CEOs with imagination and vision.

QUIZZES

Discover The Influence Of Portuguese On English Via This Quiz!

We’ve gathered some interesting words donated to English from Portuguese … as well as some that just don’t translate at all. Do you know what they mean?

Question 1 of 11

Which of the following bird names traces its immediate origin to Portuguese?

owl

crow

piranha

TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

Words nearby disruptive

disrespectful, disrobe, disroot, disrupt, disruption, disruptive, disruptive discharge, disrupture, diss, dissatisfaction, dissatisfactory

Origin of disruptive

First recorded in 1835–45; disrupt + -ive

OTHER WORDS FROM disruptive

dis·rup·tive·ly, adverbdis·rup·tive·ness, nounnon·dis·rup·tive, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020

Example sentences from the Web for disruptive

One of the most disruptive forces to the market in recent years is DISH.
New Innovations Let You Watch TV Anywhere You Go||December 8, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Uber and Airbnb—the most successful services of their kind—are “disruptive” innovations.
Inside Uber’s Political War Machine|Olivia Nuzzi|June 30, 2014|DAILY BEAST
So she made changes that have transformed the Times online; is that what her critics mean when they allege she was disruptive?
The Hypocrisy Behind The New York Times’s Abrupt Decapitation of Jill Abramson|Robert Shrum|May 18, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Cable news could be great conversation if it were willing to be disruptive.
Elizabeth Wurtzel: My Tea Party Mom Loves Al Jazeera America|Elizabeth Wurtzel|September 4, 2013|DAILY BEAST

But the track record of disruptive owners in Japan is pretty dismal.
Japan’s Fiscal Crossroads: Will Abenomics Mean Tougher Changes?|Daniel Gross|July 26, 2013|DAILY BEAST
The strange speech—strange blossom of her disruptive emotion—ended a little short; but that it ended was the principal thing.
Angela's Business|Henry Sydnor Harrison
Curiously enough, children seem to act both against and in favor of these disruptive factors.
The Intelligence of Woman|W. L. George
In a transparent dielectric the conduction must be either electrolytic or disruptive, otherwise light vibrations would be damped.
Scientific American Supplement, No. 795, March 28, 1891|Various
This sudden discharge is said to be disruptive, and it is accompanied by a flash of light and a loud report.
Things a Boy Should Know About Electricity|Thomas M. (Thomas Matthew) St. John
Between Miss Flower's and the park, Charles had been briefly unnerved by a disruptive thought.
Angela's Business|Henry Sydnor Harrison

British Dictionary definitions for disruptive

disruptive

/ (dɪsˈrʌptɪv) /

adjective

involving, causing, or tending to cause disruption

Derived forms of disruptive

disruptively, adverb

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

disruptive

adjective

QUIZZES

Words related to disruptive

Words nearby disruptive

Origin of disruptive

OTHER WORDS FROM disruptive

Example sentences from the Web for disruptive

British Dictionary definitions for disruptive

adjective

Derived forms of disruptive