What does turmoil mean?

Definitions for turmoil
ˈtɜr mɔɪltur·moil

This dictionary definitions page includes all the possible meanings, example usage and translations of the word turmoil.

Princeton's WordNet

  1. convulsion, turmoil, upheavalnoun

    a violent disturbance

    "the convulsions of the stock market"

  2. tumult, turmoilnoun

    violent agitation

  3. agitation, excitement, turmoil, upheaval, hullabaloonoun

    disturbance usually in protest

Wiktionary

  1. turmoilnoun

    A state of great disorder or uncertainty.

  2. Etymology: origin. Perhaps from.

Samuel Johnson's Dictionary

  1. Turmoilnoun

    Trouble; disturbance; harrassing uneasiness; tumultuous molestation. Little in use.

    Etymology: derived by Stephen Skinner from tremouille, French, a mil-hopper, more probably derived from moil, to labour.

    He seeks, with torment and turmoil,
    To force me live and will not let me die. Edmund Spenser.

    There I’ll rest, as after much turmoil
    A blessed soul doth in elysium. William Shakespeare.

    Blinded greatness ever in turmoil,
    Still seeking happy life, makes life a toil. Daniel.

    Happy when I, from this turmoil set free,
    That peaceful and divine assemby see. John Denham.

  2. To Turmoilverb

    Etymology: from the noun.

    That is not fault of will in those godly fathers, but the troublous occasions wherewith that wretched realm hath continually been turmoiled. Edmund Spenser.

    It is her fatal misfortune above all other countries, to be miserably tossed and turmoiled with these storms of affliction. Edmund Spenser.

    Haughty Juno, who with endless broil,
    Did earth, and heav’n and Jove himself turmoil,
    At length aton’d, her friendly pow’r shall join. Dryden.

    Having newly left those grammatic shallows, where they stuck unreasonably to learn a few words, on the sudden are transported to be tost and turmoil’d with their unballasted wits in fathomless and unquiet deeps of controversy. John Milton.

ChatGPT

  1. turmoil

    Turmoil is a state of great disturbance, confusion, uncertainty, or disorder. It can be applied to various situations such as social unrest, personal emotional conflict, or severe upheaval in any context.

Webster Dictionary

  1. Turmoilnoun

    harassing labor; trouble; molestation by tumult; disturbance; worrying confusion

  2. Turmoilverb

    to harass with commotion; to disquiet; to worry

  3. Turmoilverb

    to be disquieted or confused; to be in commotion

Chambers 20th Century Dictionary

  1. Turmoil

    tur′moil, n. harassing labour: disturbance.—v.t. to harass with commotion: to weary.—v.i. to be disquieted or in commotion. [Perh. L. tremĕre, to shake.]

Suggested Resources

  1. turmoil

    Song lyrics by turmoil -- Explore a large variety of song lyrics performed by turmoil on the Lyrics.com website.

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Numerology

  1. Chaldean Numerology

    The numerical value of turmoil in Chaldean Numerology is: 9

  2. Pythagorean Numerology

    The numerical value of turmoil in Pythagorean Numerology is: 9

Examples of turmoil in a Sentence

  1. David Bedey:

    Spirited debate and the free expression of ideas cannot flourish in an atmosphere of turmoil and instability, what is at stake is the expectation that any member of this body, whoever that might be, has a duty to strive to maintain decorum so that the people’s work, the work of all Montanans, can be accomplished.

  2. Pat Keon:

    Despite the turmoil in China, equities continued the trend we’ve seen for most of 2015 for mutual funds, non-domestic equity funds took in net new money for the week, while domestic equity funds saw money leave their coffers.

  3. Mohammed Afkhami:

    When you turn on the news, it's like, from Syria to Iraq to Libya, those places are all in turmoil, so that's what people think of the whole region ... When people say, 'Oh, Iranians make art?' it means (Iranians are) compassionate people; they're people who have sensitivity, feelings, a sense of perspective. That's something that you don't see that much because, unfortunately, the media does not show that positive narrative.

  4. Asif Kapadia:

    It wasn't the intention to upset anyone, but just to show what was going on in her life, there's a lot of turmoil, there's a lot of stuff going on in her life and that's why things turned out the way they did. That's it really.

  5. Devora Kestel:

    The isolation, the fear, the uncertainty, the economic turmoil - they all cause or could cause psychological distress.

Popularity rank by frequency of use

turmoil#10000#23324#100000

Translations for turmoil

From our Multilingual Translation Dictionary

  • ا� طرابArabic
  • Aufruhr, Unruhe, Tumult, UnordnungGerman
  • turbulencia, dificultad, desordenSpanish
  • sekasorto, kaaos, myllerrysFinnish
  • chaos, désordreFrench
  • disordine, caos, scompiglioItalian
  • ქაოსიGeorgian
  • အရှုပ်အထွေးBurmese
  • zamieszaniePolish
  • суматоха, потрясение, смятение, хаос, беспорядок, смутаRussian
  • సంక్షోభంTelugu
  • خرابیUrdu

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"turmoil." Definitions.net. STANDS4 LLC, 2025. Web. 22 Feb. 2025. <https://www.definitions.net/definition/turmoil>.

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