What does commotion mean?

Pronunciation

Part of Speech

Noun

Definition

A state of intense excitement, confusion, or disorder; a tumultuous situation.

Etymology

The word “commotion” comes from the Old French “commot”, meaning “stirring” or “agitation”, which is derived from the Latin “commotus”, meaning “stirred” or “moved”.

Usage Notes

Use “commotion” to describe a situation that is chaotic or disorganized. For example, “The crowd erupted into commotion when the news was announced.”

Cultural References

“Commotion” has been used in various literary and musical works, including William Shakespeare’s play “Hamlet” and the song “Commotion” by Lynyrd Skynyrd.

Idiomatic Expressions or Phrases

• Causing a commotion
• Stirring up commotion

Related Words or Phrases

• Mess
• Chaos
• Uproar

Collocations

• create a commotion
• stir up a commotion
• make a commotion

Frequency of Use

According to the Corpus of Contemporary American English, “commotion” is used approximately 1.47 times per million words.

Common Misspellings

commote, comotion, commition, comotionn