disarray
1 of 2noun
dis·ar·ray ˌdis-ə-ˈrā 
1
: a lack of order or sequence : confusion, disorder
the room was in disarray
… the disarray of paper in the In-Out basket …
Jackie Weger
Jackie Weger2
: disorderly dress : dishabille
disarray
2 of 2verb
disarrayed; disarraying; disarrays
transitive verb
1
: to throw into disorder
The discarded magazines and newspapers, the layers of dust and disarrayed rugs … Gloria Naylor
Gloria Naylor2
: undress
Synonyms
Noun
- chance-medley
- chaos
- confusion
- disarrangement
- dishevelment
- disorder
- disorderedness
- disorderliness
- disorganization
- free-for-all
- havoc
- heck
- hell
- jumble
- mare's nest
- mess
- messiness
- misorder
- muddle
- muss
- shambles
- snake pit
- tumble
- welter
Verb
- confuse
- derange
- disarrange
- discompose
- dishevel
- disjoint
- dislocate
- disorder
- disorganize
- disrupt
- disturb
- hash
- jumble
- mess (up)
- mix (up)
- muddle
- muss
- rumple
- scramble
- shuffle
- tousle
- tumble
- upset
See all Synonyms & Antonyms 
Example Sentences
Noun The room was in disarray. The company has fallen into complete disarray. Verb he had accidentally disarrayed his brother's CDs, leaving a telltale sign of borrowing without permission
Recent Examples on the Web Taylor Wilson, USA TODAY, 14 Sep. 2022 His own comfort with living is reflected by a permanent state of slight disarray. Elizabeth Hayt, ELLE Decor, 26 Aug. 2022 However, bridging cloud and on-premises systems has proven to be a significant challenge, in part because businesses are suffering from data disarray. Ram Venkatesh, Forbes, 10 Aug. 2022 Colorful, ruined, inoperable, piled in luxurious disarray in a raw clearing beneath towering trees in that eternal rural mainstay, the junk yard. Joy Williams, The New Yorker, 5 Aug. 2022 These excerpts are a masterwork in opposites — shape and disarray, the known and the unknown, desert and blooming, doom and hope. New York Times, 21 July 2022 That conversation comes as the district is in some disarray. Connor Sanders, The Salt Lake Tribune, 20 July 2022 This recent boomlet of stories regarding the party making a big switch at the top of the ticket is a new, apocalyptic take on the age-old Democrats in disarray story. Alex Shephard, The New Republic, 14 June 2022 The confusion and disarray over the 2022 Summit of the Americas is also fueling discussion about whether such meetings continue to be useful to those who participate. Tracy Wilkinsonstaff Writer, Los Angeles Times, 6 June 2022 Ram Venkatesh, Forbes, 10 Aug. 2022 For much of this summer, staff shortages and a surge of travelers have led to long lines at security and passport control, disarray at baggage claim and crowded terminals in Europe. Jacob Passy, WSJ, 12 July 2022 The hands-off approach in Washington is adding to disarray around the death penalty nationwide as pressure increases in some conservative states to find ways to continue executions amid shortages of the lethal-injection drugs. Michael Tarm, Anchorage Daily News, 18 June 2021 Eslam Negm is no stranger to disarray on the Suez Canal. NBC News, 2 Apr. 2021 Culley assumes a tough challenge of changing the culture of a Texans franchise that in the last year has gone from playoff squad to disarray. Mike Jones, USA TODAY, 28 Jan. 2021 The economic benefits are nothing compared to disarray and division within NATO. The Editorial Board, WSJ, 16 Dec. 2020 Naird’s situation is of a man with ramrod-straight posture prostrated and disarrayed at many odd angles. Troy Patterson, The New Yorker, 28 May 2020 Large or small, the surface had to appear elegantly disarrayed. Julie Lasky, New York Times, 11 Mar. 2020 See More
Noun
Officials from the Pentagon also commented on the counteroffensive yesterday, saying that success in the Kharkiv region comes down to Ukraine's tenacity, along with US weapons and Russian disarray. Taylor Wilson, USA TODAY, 14 Sep. 2022 His own comfort with living is reflected by a permanent state of slight disarray. Elizabeth Hayt, ELLE Decor, 26 Aug. 2022 However, bridging cloud and on-premises systems has proven to be a significant challenge, in part because businesses are suffering from data disarray. Ram Venkatesh, Forbes, 10 Aug. 2022 Colorful, ruined, inoperable, piled in luxurious disarray in a raw clearing beneath towering trees in that eternal rural mainstay, the junk yard. Joy Williams, The New Yorker, 5 Aug. 2022 These excerpts are a masterwork in opposites — shape and disarray, the known and the unknown, desert and blooming, doom and hope. New York Times, 21 July 2022 That conversation comes as the district is in some disarray. Connor Sanders, The Salt Lake Tribune, 20 July 2022 This recent boomlet of stories regarding the party making a big switch at the top of the ticket is a new, apocalyptic take on the age-old Democrats in disarray story. Alex Shephard, The New Republic, 14 June 2022 The confusion and disarray over the 2022 Summit of the Americas is also fueling discussion about whether such meetings continue to be useful to those who participate. Tracy Wilkinsonstaff Writer, Los Angeles Times, 6 June 2022 Verb
Hybrid data is here to stay, so don’t let data disarray slow innovation or undermine smart business decision making. Ram Venkatesh, Forbes, 10 Aug. 2022 For much of this summer, staff shortages and a surge of travelers have led to long lines at security and passport control, disarray at baggage claim and crowded terminals in Europe. Jacob Passy, WSJ, 12 July 2022 The hands-off approach in Washington is adding to disarray around the death penalty nationwide as pressure increases in some conservative states to find ways to continue executions amid shortages of the lethal-injection drugs. Michael Tarm, Anchorage Daily News, 18 June 2021 Eslam Negm is no stranger to disarray on the Suez Canal. NBC News, 2 Apr. 2021 Culley assumes a tough challenge of changing the culture of a Texans franchise that in the last year has gone from playoff squad to disarray. Mike Jones, USA TODAY, 28 Jan. 2021 The economic benefits are nothing compared to disarray and division within NATO. The Editorial Board, WSJ, 16 Dec. 2020 Naird’s situation is of a man with ramrod-straight posture prostrated and disarrayed at many odd angles. Troy Patterson, The New Yorker, 28 May 2020 Large or small, the surface had to appear elegantly disarrayed. Julie Lasky, New York Times, 11 Mar. 2020 See More Word History
Etymology
Noun
Middle English disaraye, disaray "disorder, broken military formation," borrowed from Anglo-French dissairay, noun derivative of desaraier "to mishandle, throw into disorder" — more at disarray entry 2
Verb
Middle English disarraien "to break up (a military formation), throw into disorder," borrowed from Anglo-French desaraier "to mishandle, throw into disorder," from des- dis- + arraier, arreyer, aroier "to arrange, order, marshal, equip, attire" — more at array entry 1
First Known Use
Noun
15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1
Verb
14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1
Kids Definition
disarray
noun
dis·ar·ray ˌdis-ə-ˈrā
: a confused or messy condition
The room was in complete disarray.
disarray 1 of 2
noun
as in chaos
a state in which everything is out of order the boys' bedroom was in its usual disarray Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
- chaos
- havoc
- mess
- jumble
- confusion
- hell
- disorganization
- disorder
- shambles
- disarrangement
- messiness
- dishevelment
- disorderliness
- tangle
- muddle
- heck
- riot
- clutter
- welter
- anarchy
- tumble
- muss
- snake pit
- free-for-all
- misorder
- misrule
- disorderedness
- maze
- labyrinth
- mare's nest
- chance-medley
- lawlessness
- maelstrom
- snarl
- mishmash
- hodgepodge
- shuffle
- morass
- web
- storm
- miscellany
- motley
- knot
- litter
- medley
- bollix
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
- order
- system
- orderliness
- plan
- pattern
- method
disarray
2 of 2verb
as in to disrupt
to undo the proper order or arrangement of he had accidentally disarrayed his brother's CDs, leaving a telltale sign of borrowing without permission Synonyms & Similar Words
- disrupt
- disorder
- jumble
- shuffle
- muddle
- disorganize
- disarrange
- confuse
- upset
- disturb
- scramble
- dishevel
- discompose
- muss
- derange
- tangle
- disjoint
- clutter
- tumble
- tousle
- snarl
- hash
- dislocate
- rumple
- embroil
- unsettle
- perturb
- mix (up)
- mess (up)
- entangle
- stir (up)
- agitate
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
- array
- organize
- order
- range
- tidy
- dispose
- regulate
- arrange
- straighten (up)
- marshal
- line
- line up
- align
- marshall
- classify
- adjust
- systematize
- fix
- queue
- codify
- draw up
- make up
- aline
- spruce (up)
- methodize
- systemize
- groom
- unscramble