Turmoil

Pronunciation

• IPA: /ˈtɜːmɔɪl/

Origin

Unknown origin. Perhaps from Old French tremouille ("the hopper of a mill").

Full definition of turmoil

Noun

1. A state of great disorder or uncertainty.

1. Harassing labour; trouble; disturbance.
• ShakespeareAnd there I'll rest, as after much turmoil,
  A blessed soul doth in Elysium.
• 1918, W. B. Maxwell, The Mirror and the Lamp Chapter 7, The turmoil went on—no rest, no peace. … It was nearly eleven o'clock now, and he strolled out again. In the little fair created by the costers' barrows the evening only seemed beginning; and the naphtha flares made one's eyes ache, the men's voices grated harshly, and the girls' faces saddened one.

Synonyms

• chaos, disorder

Verb

1. (obsolete, intransitive) To be disquieted or confused; to be in commotion.
2. (obsolete, transitive) To harass with commotion; to disquiet; to worry.
• SpenserIt is her fatal misfortune ... to be miserably tossed and turmoiled with these storms of affliction.