Dictionary Thesaurus Word Dynamo Quotes Reference Translator Spanish

trouble

[truhb-uhl]

Example Sentences Origin

verb (used with object)

to disturb the mental calm and contentment of; worry; distress; agitate.

to put to inconvenience, exertion, pains, or the like: May I trouble you to shut the door?

to cause bodily pain, discomfort, or disorder to; afflict: to be troubled by arthritis.

to annoy, vex, or bother: Don't trouble her with petty complaints now.

to disturb, agitate, or stir up so as to make turbid, as water or wine: A heavy gale troubled the ocean waters.

verb (used without object)

to put oneself to inconvenience, extra effort, or the like.

to be distressed or agitated mentally; worry: She always troubled over her son's solitariness.

:10

:09

:08

:07

:06

:05

:04

:03

:02

:01

Trouble is one of our favorite verbs.

So is bowdlerise. Does it mean:

to introduce subtleties into or argue subtly about.

to expurgate (a written work) by removing or modifying passages considered vulgar or objectionable.

LEARN MORE FUN, UNUSUAL VERBS WITH WORD DYNAMO...

noun

difficulty, annoyance, or harassment: It would be no trouble at all to advise you.

unfortunate or distressing position, circumstance, or occurrence; misfortune: Financial trouble may threaten security.

10.

civil disorder, disturbance, or conflict: political trouble in the new republic; labor troubles.

11.

a physical disorder, disease, ailment, etc.; ill health: heart trouble; stomach trouble.

12.

mental or emotional disturbance or distress; worry: Trouble and woe were her lot in life.

EXPAND

13.

an instance of this: some secret trouble weighing on his mind; a mother who shares all her children's troubles.

14.

effort, exertion, or pains in doing something; inconvenience endured in accomplishing some action, deed, etc.: The results were worth the trouble it took.

15.

an objectionable feature; problem; drawback: The trouble with your proposal is that it would be too costly to implement.

16.

something or someone that is a cause or source of disturbance, distress, annoyance, etc.

17.

a personal habit or trait that is a disadvantage or a cause of mental distress: His greatest trouble is oversensitivity.

18.

the Troubles,

the violence and civil war in Ireland, 1920–22.

the conflict between Protestants and Catholics in Northern Ireland, beginning in 1969.

COLLAPSE

Idiom

19.

in trouble, Informal. pregnant out of wedlock (used as a euphemism).

Origin:
1175–1225; (v.) Middle English troublen < Old French troubler < Vulgar Latin *turbulare, derivative of *turbulus turbid, back formation from Latin turbulentus turbulent; (noun) Middle English < Middle French, derivative of troubler

Related forms

trou·bled·ly, adverb

trou·bled·ness, noun

trou·bler, noun

trou·bling·ly, adverb

non·trou·bling, adjective

EXPAND

o·ver·trou·ble, verb, -bled, -bling.

self-trou·bled, adjective

self-trou·bling, adjective

un·trou·bled, adjective

COLLAPSE

Synonyms
1. concern, upset, confuse. 4. pester, plague, fret, torment, hector, harass, badger. 12. concern, grief, agitation, care, suffering. 14. See care. 15. trial, tribulation, affliction, misfortune.

Antonyms
1. mollify; delight.

Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2012.
Cite This Source

Link To trouble

Example Sentences

Although, strictly speaking, the trouble isn't of his making.

Scientists find clues to why adolescents seek out and find trouble.

What you might not know about them is they're graceful, they can swim, and they're in trouble.

EXPAND

Although, strictly speaking, the trouble isn't of his making.

Scientists find clues to why adolescents seek out and find trouble.

What you might not know about them is they're graceful, they can swim, and they're in trouble.

Alcoholics have trouble understanding jokes, but they may be missing out on much more than a chance to laugh.

Borrell's article, when he notes that birds have no trouble eating them.

Other caterpillars that cause trouble in fruit and vegetable gardens are cabbage worms, codling moths, and hornworms.

Linux n00bs won't have any trouble setting up wireless, managing files, and even snapping pics on the integrated webcam.

We, on the other hand, have trouble imagining that kind of society.

As usual, he found them-but not without deep trouble.

Computers have great trouble deciphering voices that are speaking simultaneously.

If ranchers want to move their cattle into subsidized grazing area they are asking for trouble.

In years past, the preferred solution to garden problems was to eradicate the trouble with pesticides.

If you're going to flub a power-drive, this is the club for bailing you out of trouble.

Private schools were in trouble because of the stock market.

But they can and do climb trees to sleep, eat, or look out for trouble.

The fact that they're not could spell trouble for humans, too.

Arizonans get into more trouble with poisonous creatures than do the residents of any other state.

The flooring of our coop has caused some trouble over the seasons.

Unfortunately their ivory has gotten them into a lot of trouble.

In other words, it figured out whether or not violating the social norm would get us in trouble.

The trouble is, our friends keep having afterthoughts, and they write all over the margins.

The trouble with conventional wisdom is, it's conventional.

But the real hope is that when people see these things they will understand that the ocean is in trouble while there's still time.

However, it is great that someone finally put effort into making the letters that usually trouble dyslexics more discernible.

Ben reports that he is having trouble making headway because loose sand is falling into the bottom of the hole.

There have been plenty of drones, so she shouldn't have any trouble getting mated.

And that means that if the bat populations start suffering, the forests may be in trouble.

Trouble is, these ballast water pools typically harbor lots of aquatic species.

Trouble is, when millions of people eat it, it could potentially go the way of the dodo.

The older one has been through fire and back, the younger one can't stay out of trouble.

Customers have obviously had no trouble finding them.

The trouble was that no one could agree on what it was or its relevance to the evolution of other animals.

Even gardeners, it seems, still have trouble seeing the value in anything that isn't from somewhere else.

And yet, they've been eating them for months and never had any trouble.

Spotted-wing drosophila: new trouble for west coast soft-fruit growers.

Notable deaths this year trouble self-reflective baby boomers.

In recording thought in written words, he believed, people save themselves the trouble of keeping thought alive in.

There's trouble ahead in the artist's eerie yet riveting paintings, now the subject of a major exhibition.

If you're having trouble with those numbers, it means that if you can give.

The rising cost of college could spell trouble for college.

Comic-book super heroes always sense when there is trouble afoot, and swoop in to save the day.

Children with dyslexia have trouble reading and writing, but the root of the problem may actually be in.

The first sign of trouble is often a mound of fresh, finely.

Infected fish are physically stunted, and their muscles are so weakened that they have trouble swimming or even pumping blood.

Many of us have seen trouble coming for a long, long, time.

Birds and other predators know it, and have no trouble picking up a quick meal.

Parents of toddlers have known for years that tired kids have trouble controlling their emotions.

The trouble is, the results aren't really what you'd expect from either.

As has been mentioned, this student is probably having trouble finding someone to write a letter for them.

The pioneering astronaut foresees hotels in orbit-and trouble down below.

People who have trouble understanding health and medical information are more likely to get hospitalized.

In the past, however, radar has had trouble distinguishing actual turbulence producers from data contaminants.

The company is having trouble raising the cash because there isn't likely to be an immediate return on investors' money.

In this extended family, people gather to pray in times of trouble.

Unfortunately the trouble is that our powers of destruction have grown exponentially over time.

The parents having trouble with their toddlers usually weren't spotting the tiny cues that signalled those crucial moments.

Faculty members who say they have never had trouble locating material because it was improperly.

Pelton is an adventure travel writer renowned for his swashbuckling forays into global trouble spots.

And many seniors have trouble sleeping, which can lead to other health problems.

Nikki was so obese that animal handlers had trouble locating his tail underneath layers of fat.

Poor fuel economy can be a symptom of car trouble, or driver trouble.

He has a huge, beautiful house that he bought with his ex-girlfriend and has trouble affording without her.

He had trouble feeding himself, and he couldn't groom his four female consorts.

For three large males to quiet abruptly surely meant trouble.

The trouble is, the river in which pallids flourished no longer exists.

You've heard it before: good gardeners take the trouble to learn botanical names so there won't be any confusion about what they.

The trouble is, it's worse than your phone in almost every way.

He also does some for sleep so if you are having trouble with that, it might be worth a try.

Wet winters can spell trouble if deep snow impairs their movement or covers their food.

Such lead-based dyes don't seem to be harmful, he notes, because they have trouble penetrating the skin.

For all their individual talents, the musicians had trouble finding a groove.

His back legs are really weak and he has trouble laying down and standing up.

Coral reefs are in trouble across the globe as rising greenhouse gas levels warm the oceans.

Trouble is, they haven't proven that any problems exist.

If certain diseases or nematodes cause trouble locally, you may be able to grow varieties that resist one or more problems.

Unclear, mixed and unachievable expectations can mean trouble.

The trouble with the military approach is that it is extremely expensive and yet addresses none of the underlying problems.

He did not want any successful slave leader free to stir up trouble.

Trouble is, these two guys couldn't be more different.

It's the only tuna that can be labeled white meat tuna and it's not in trouble.

The hug a tree people would try to set aside land and stir up a lot of trouble.

It gave me my first hint that honeybees were in trouble when they vanished from my garden for two years.

Meehan has run into trouble with allegations of plagiarism before.

But many poorer residents rely on buses to get around and they were having more trouble.

We were warned by well meaning friends before he was born that his name will spell trouble.

Signs of trouble are skeletonized leaves, robins swarming around trees, and even the sound of raspy.

The trouble with cities is that they require external support.

Whatever is done to remedy the situation will add trouble and expense, but it is probably worth it in the long run.

Researchers find trouble among phytoplankton, the base of the food chain, which.

Trouble is, the weather is windy and chilly right now.

Those who suffer from this also have problems interpreting facial displays of emotion and trouble in socialization.

Cancer is not the only kind of trouble that could occur.

COLLAPSE

Collins

World English Dictionary

trouble (ˈtrʌb^əl)

—n
1.	a state or condition of mental distress or anxiety
2.	a state or condition of disorder or unrest: industrial trouble
3.	a condition of disease, pain, or malfunctioning: she has liver trouble
4.	a cause of distress, disturbance, or pain; problem: what is the trouble?
5.	effort or exertion taken to do something: he took a lot of trouble over this design
6.	liability to suffer punishment or misfortune (esp in the phrase be in trouble): he's in trouble with the police
7.	a personal quality that is regarded as a weakness, handicap, or cause of annoyance: his trouble is that he's too soft
8.	(plural)
	a. political unrest or public disturbances
	b. the Troubles political violence in Ireland during the 1920s or in Northern Ireland between the late 1960s and the late 1990s
9.	the condition of an unmarried girl who becomes pregnant (esp in the phrase in trouble)

—vb (usually with a negative and foll by about)
10.	(tr) to cause trouble to; upset, pain, or worry
11.	to put oneself to inconvenience; be concerned: don't trouble about me
12.	(intr; usually with a negative) to take pains; exert oneself: please don't trouble to write everything down
13.	(tr) to cause inconvenience or discomfort to: does this noise trouble you?
14.	(tr; usually passive) to agitate or make rough: the seas were troubled
15.	(Caribbean) (tr) to interfere with: he wouldn't like anyone to trouble his new bicycle

[C13: from Old French troubler, from Vulgar Latin turbulāre (unattested), from Late Latin turbidāre, from turbidus confused, from turba commotion]

'troubled

—*adj*

'troubler

—n

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
Cite This Source

Etymonline

Word Origin & History

trouble

early 13c., from O.Fr. trubler (11c.), metathesis of turbler, from V.L. *turbulare, from L.L. turbidare "to trouble, make turbid," from L. turbidus (see turbid). The noun is attested from early 13c.; troublesome is attested by 1540s. Troubled in ref. to waters, etc., is from

EXPAND

late 14c. A trouble-shooter (1905) was originally one who works on telegraph or telephone lines. The Troubles in ref. to times of violence and unrest in Ireland is attested from 1880, in ref. to the rebellion of 1640s.

COLLAPSE

American Heritage

Idioms & Phrases

trouble

In addition to the idioms beginning with trouble, also see borrow trouble; fish in troubled waters; go to the trouble; in trouble with; pour oil on troubled waters.