What is another word for upsetting?

Need synonyms for upsetting? Here's a list of similar words from our thesaurus that you can use instead.

Contexts ▼

Adjective

Causing distress or discomfort

Offensive in nature

Causing embarrassment or unease

Causing or tending to cause disruption

Inconsiderate and harsh to others

Discordant

Causing disruption or annoyance through being unwelcome or uninvited

Causing surprising negative emotions

Verb

To be irritating or upsetting, typically with repeated or unpleasant acts

To be triggering a passionate feeling or reaction

Present participle for to disturb mentally or emotionally

Present participle for to cause disarray or disorganization in the order of

Present participle for to knock over something

Present participle for to defeat in unexpected circumstances

Present participle for to cause disorder in

Noun

A change to an opposite direction, position, or course of action

Disturbance or problems which interrupt an event, activity, or process

The state of being bewildered or unclear in one's mind about something

… more ▼

Adjective

▲

Causing distress or discomfort

agonizing^US

agonising^UK

sombre^UK

somber^US

unfavorable^US

unsavoury^UK

unsavory^US

enough to try the patience of a saint

enough to drive you up the wall

bedevilling^UK

humourless^UK

humorless^US

lugubrious

meagre^UK

meager^US

bedeviling^US

terrorizing^US

terrorising^UK

agonized^US

agonised^UK

gruelling^UK

ill-favored^US

gray^US

grey^UK

grueling^US

anemic^US

anaemic^UK

emotionally exhausting

not encouraging

emotionally depleting

more ❯

“Martin has just gone through a painful and upsetting divorce.”

Adjective

Offensive in nature

libelous^US

libellous^UK

dishonoring^US

minimizing^US

unfavorable^US

minimising^UK

opprobrious

malicious

more ❯

“Sally still hasn't forgiven you for that upsetting comment you made about her derriere.”

Adjective

▲

Causing embarrassment or unease

dishonoring^US

more ❯

Adjective

▲

Causing or tending to cause disruption

full of ups and downs

off straight and narrow

more ❯

Adjective

▲

Inconsiderate and harsh to others

with a heart of stone

ill-humored^US

uncivilized^US

uncivilised^UK

unfavorable^US

gray^US

grey^UK

speaking as one finds

plain-spoken

calling a spade a spade

unsavoury^UK

unsavory^US

terrorizing^US

terrorising^UK

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Adjective

Discordant

more ❯

Adjective

▲

Causing disruption or annoyance through being unwelcome or uninvited

inquiring^US

enquiring^UK

chiseling^US

chiselling^UK

burning with curiosity

not taking no for an answer

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Adjective

▲

Causing surprising negative emotions

Verb

▲

To be irritating or upsetting, typically with repeated or unpleasant acts

bedeviling^US

bedevilling^UK

rubbing up the wrong way

driving to distraction

getting under your skin

getting up your nose

getting your goat

giving someone grief

giving someone the hump

hacking off

making your blood boil

driving round the bend

driving round the twist

getting your dander up

hacking you off

heating up

making someone see red

getting on your nerves

giving someone the pip

putting your back up

hitting where one lives

getting on someone's nerves

getting someone's wick

ruffling someone's feathers

making someone's blood boil

getting in someone's hair

rattling someone's cage

getting someone's dander up

getting on one's nerves

trying someone's patience

getting on someone's tits

getting up someone's nose

getting someone's hackles up

getting under someone's skin

getting someone's goat

making someone's hackles rise

getting someone's back up

giving someone a hard time

agonizing^US

agonising^UK

tantalizing^US

rubbing the wrong way

tantalising^UK

bending someone's ear

terrorizing^US

victimizing^US

making things hot for someone

getting on someone's wick

giving a bad time

breathing down someone's neck

terrorising^UK

victimising^UK

criticizing^US

criticising^UK

getting under one's skin

making anxious

putting pressure on

freaking out

putting someone's back up

stirring up

wearing on

taking the piss out of

discriminating against

making it hot for someone

sticking in one's craw

getting in one's hair

bringing pressure to bear on

setting one's teeth on edge

putting the screws on

falling on

ragging on

getting across someone

putting the squeeze on

wearing

trying the patience of

causing suffering to

keeping complaining to

dominating

taking the mickey out of

driving you up the wall

moaning at

making fun of

swipeing at

showing antagonism to

feeling ill will towards

showing ill will towards

pushing about

bearing a grudge towards

putting someone's nose out of joint

spurring

chiding

caviling^US

cavilling^UK

pushing someon's buttons

messing

getting on the nerves of

getting in the hair of

arousing hostility in

running up the wrong way

leading someone a merry dance

playing cat and mouse

putting through wringer

rubbing salt in wound

belabouring^UK

discontenting

getting your hackles up

raising your hackles

getting on nerves

trying your patience

rubbing you up the wrong way

winding somebody up

getting on somebody's nerves

trying one's patience

getting a rise out of

causing discomfort to

losing the affection of

sticking the knife into

getting the knife into

searching high heaven

disadvantaging

stirring

swaggering

using strong-arm tactics on

riding roughshod over

belaboring^US

bringing pressure to bear

putting the bite on

making someone fed up

putting someone to trouble

giving someone bother

causing someone difficulty

making someone go out of his way

putting into a flap

flooring

putting someone off their stroke

causing someone to lose their composure

causing inconvenience to

imposing upon

creating difficulties for

tyrannizing^US

demonizing^US

having your knife into

demonising^UK

tyrannising^UK

jumping on one's case

giving the needle

giving one the business

causing to feel mental strain

causing to feel emotional strain

satirizing^US

carrying a heavy load

getting into a dither

eating one's heart out

pulling somebody's leg

satirising^UK

pulling someone's leg

more ❯

Verb

▲

To be triggering a passionate feeling or reaction

galvanizing^US

energising^UK

energizing^US

galvanising^UK

Verb

Present participle for to disturb mentally or emotionally

hurting somebody's feelings

getting on someone's wick

“She was highly sensitive, and we were constantly walking on eggshells trying not to upset her.”

Verb

▲

Present participle for to cause disarray or disorganization in the order of

“The ship trembled slightly, enough to make one lose their balance, but not enough to upset anything.”

Verb

▲

Present participle for to knock over something

“Willie sprang on the top of the table and upset the bottle of ink upon Martha's manuscript.”

Verb

▲

Present participle for to defeat in unexpected circumstances

“A rank outsider would upset the reigning champion.”

Verb

▲

Present participle for to cause disorder in

throwing into confusion

throwing into disorder

throwing out

turning topsy-turvy

“Many activists and researchers claim that constant human intervention will upset the balance of nature.”

Noun

▲

A change to an opposite direction, position, or course of action

cancelation^US

canceling^US

cancelling^UK

more ❯

Noun

▲

Disturbance or problems which interrupt an event, activity, or process

Noun

▲

The state of being bewildered or unclear in one's mind about something

skepticism^US

scepticism^UK

lack of comprehension

state of bewilderment

state of disorientation

feverishness

fever

trancelike state

state of stupefaction

lack of understanding

state of perturbation

source of consternation

kick in the teeth

source of distress

a bolt out of the blue

source of amazement

a bolt from the blue

more ❯

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Related Words and Phrases

What is another word for upsetting?

Need synonyms for upsetting? Here's a list of similar words from our thesaurus that you can use instead.

Related Words and Phrases

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