distraught

C2+ Topic:Describing Qualities

US /dɪˈstrɔt/ UK /dɪˈstrɔːt/ See IPA manual

Meanings

1

adj
deeply agitated or distressed with worry or grief

The distraught mother searched the crowd for her lost child.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

1 adj · deeply agitated or... distressedagitatedfrantic overwroughtbeside oneselfanguished

Opposites

calm composed serene collected untroubled

Word family

Derived forms distraughtly

Related forms distract distraction

Etymology

A Middle English alteration of distract (past participle distract), influenced by straught, the old past participle of stretch; ultimately from Latin distrahere ('to pull apart'), from dis- ('apart') + trahere ('to draw').

distrahere Latin trahere Latin

View etymology graph ->

Topics

Describing Qualities

External links

# distraught

**Type:** Word
**Level:** C2+
**Part of speech:** adj
**IPA (US):** /dɪˈstrɔt/
**IPA (UK):** /dɪˈstrɔːt/

## Meanings
1. deeply agitated or distressed with worry or grief

## Examples
- The distraught mother searched the crowd for her lost child.

## Synonyms
- distressed
- agitated
- frantic
- overwrought
- beside oneself
- anguished

## Antonyms
- calm
- composed
- serene
- collected
- untroubled

## Derived Forms
- distraughtly

## Related Forms
- distract
- distraction

## Roots and Affixes
- Root: distrahere
- Root: trahere - to pull

## Etymology
A Middle English alteration of distract (past participle distract), influenced by straught, the old past participle of stretch; ultimately from Latin distrahere ('to pull apart'), from dis- ('apart') + trahere ('to draw').

## AI Etymology
Distraught has this etymological history: A Middle English alteration of distract (past participle distract), influenced by straught, the old past participle of stretch; ultimately from Latin distrahere ('to pull apart'), from dis- ('apart') + trahere ('to draw'). The etymological trail includes Latin distrahere and Latin trahere. As an adjective, distraught describes what is deeply agitated or distressed with worry or grief. The same family is visible in derived forms such as distraughtly and related forms such as distract and distraction. The analysis is partly morphological, with the modern form built from the elements named in the history.

## Topics
- Describing Qualities

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