UPSETS Synonyms: 179 Similar and Opposite Words

upsets 1 of 2

verb

present tense third-person singular of upset

as in disturbs

to trouble the mind of; to make uneasy the smallest things can upset us if we're already stressed

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in overturns

to turn on one's side or upside down the narrow boat upsets easily and should be handled with care

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in disrupts

to undo the proper order or arrangement of the change in the bus schedule upset our daily routine

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

upsets

2 of 2

noun

plural of upset

as in disruptions

an act or instance of the order of things being disturbed the move to a new town is just the latest in a series of upsets for my family over the last year

Synonyms & Similar Words

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of upsets

Verb

Tyson Gay upsets the defending world and Olympic champion Usain Bolt in a race between the two fastest runners in history. — Assistant Sports Editor, Los Angeles Times, 6 Aug. 2026 Don’t be home to have to listen to any of the buzz that upsets you. — Harriette Cole, Mercury News, 7 July 2026 Paraguay upsets Germany in sudden-death penalty kicks Gustavo Gómez of Paraguay celebrates after José Canale converts the winning penalty in a penalty shootout against Germany on Monday. — Josh Feldman, NBC news, 30 June 2026 With a victory on Thursday, Sweden would win Group F if Tunisia upsets the Netherlands; otherwise Sweden would finish in second place. — Steven Rosenbaum, CBS News, 25 June 2026 House of the Dragon’s season-three premiere upsets the conventional wisdom. — Amanda Whiting, Vulture, 22 June 2026 According to Harvard Health, travel disrupts the body’s natural rhythms — time changes, altered eating schedules, poor sleep — which upsets digestion, especially in people with already-sensitive guts. — Ryan Brennan, Kansas City Star, 13 June 2026 What upsets Harry and Meghan about it? — Lizzie Lanuza, StyleCaster, 9 June 2026 The fruit upsets their digestive systems. — Graham Womack, Sacbee.com, 7 June 2026

Noun

Advertisement His win comes just weeks after several Democratic socialist and progressive candidates scored major primary upsets against long-term establishment incumbents in safe-blue districts. — Nik Popli, Time, 5 Aug. 2026 El-Sayed's win is a boon for the left flank of the Democratic Party, which has recently scored upsets in New York and Colorado. — Justin Papp, CNBC, 4 Aug. 2026 That reaction perhaps suggests that there have been more of these upsets than is the case. — Benjamin Wallace-Wells, New Yorker, 26 July 2026 March Madness has an American culture expectation of automatic bids, of Cinderella stories and upsets. — Jason Kirk, New York Times, 24 July 2026 Trainer has a knack for pulling off upsets, but this is a tall task. — Danny Brewer, Forbes.com, 23 July 2026 Not to keep banging on about Cape Verde, but not many expected the tiny island nation to play so well, so most of its results look like upsets on paper. — Ben Church, CNN Money, 20 July 2026 After 95 games held over four weeks packed with upsets, hydration breaks, and late match comebacks, the stage is set for eight remaining nations to take the pitch in the 2026 FIFA World Cup quarterfinals. — Kelly McCarthy, ABC News, 9 July 2026 When Mostafa Zico doubled Egypt’s lead after a sweeping move in the 67th minute, Egypt was on the brink of one of the great World Cup upsets. — David Hickey, NBC news, 8 July 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for upsets

Verb

Tilling or plowing in the summer disturbs the soil's delicate ecosystem and exposes moist soil to rapid water loss.

— Mary Marlowe Leverette, Southern Living, 24 June 2026
The pier in Michigan City’s Washington Park disturbs the natural flow of sand along the lakeshore, creating new land east of the pier but starving beaches to the west, an erosion problem repeated by other manmade structures that jut out into Lake Michigan.

— Doug Ross, Chicago Tribune, 15 June 2026

Definition of disturbs

Verb

When someone falls into the Chicago River, jumps from a bridge, overturns a kayak, or becomes trapped beneath the surface, the Chicago Fire Department's Marine Unit is often among the first crews called to respond.

— Darius Johnson, CBS News, 6 Aug. 2026
Swift overturns the tradition of Homer’s blindness in Gulliver’s Travels partly to remind us of the poet’s eye for detail, but also to emphasize the possibility of direct connection between Homer and his audience.

— Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 17 July 2026

Definition of overturns

Noun

Growth headwinds India, the world's fastest-growing major economy, is among the countries most vulnerable to the supply disruptions caused by the Iran war.

— Priyanka Salve, CNBC, 5 Aug. 2026
The new emergency stems from the disruptions to the global oil shipping in the Black Sea and Kerch Strait as the war.

— Alexandra Kukulka, Chicago Tribune, 5 Aug. 2026

Definition of disruptions

Verb

The boat capsizes moments after departure All 15 victims were on a company trip organized by India's Lava International, a smartphone and consumer electronics manufacturer, for its employees, distributors and retail partners, the company said.

— CBS News, CBS News, 13 July 2026
Boat capsizes during sudden storm on Geneva Lake Officials said all four children aboard were wearing life jackets at the time of the incident.

— Anthony Thompson, USA Today, 4 July 2026

Definition of capsizes

Verb

Any adversary who confuses media noise with American weakness will discover the truth the hard way.

— Michael Loria, USA Today, 7 Aug. 2026
These opportunists drown out the core mission, creating a cacophony of competing voices that confuses donors, crowd the inboxes of CEOs and members of Congress with colliding petitions, and paralyzes meaningful action by draining critical funding and attention away from the truly effective groups.

— Jeffrey Sonnenfeld, Time, 28 June 2026

Definition of confuses

Noun

Not getting enough sleep, not being able to get to sleep and waking up during the night are all signs of sleep disturbances.

— Doreen Samelson, Forbes.com, 6 Aug. 2026
What begins as relatively weak shear disturbances can quickly evolve into major waves and vortices.

— Andrew Paul, Popular Science, 5 Aug. 2026

Definition of disturbances

Browse Nearby Words

upset

upsets

upsetting

See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

Style

“Upsets.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/upsets. Accessed 13 Aug. 2026.

Copy Citation

Synonyms of upsets

verb

noun

Example Sentences

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

More from Merriam-Webster on upsets

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

salvo

Popular in Grammar & Usage

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

7 Pairs of Commonly Confused Words

Is that lie 'bald-faced' or 'bold-faced'?

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?

Popular in Wordplay

Words from the 'Odyssey'

The Longest Long Words List

It's a Scorcher! Words for the Summer Heat

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World

'Gaslighting,' 'Woke,' 'Democracy,' and Other Top Lookups

Popular

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

Words from the 'Odyssey'

The Longest Long Words List

Games & Quizzes