distract
    v 1: draw someone's attention away from something; "The thief
         distracted the bystanders"; "He deflected his competitors"
         [syn: distract, deflect]
    2: disturb in mind or make uneasy or cause to be worried or
       alarmed; "She was rather perturbed by the news that her
       father was seriously ill" [syn: perturb, unhinge,
       disquiet, trouble, cark, distract, disorder]

Distract \Dis*tract"\, a. [L. distractus, p. p. of distrahere to
   draw asunder; dis- + trahere to draw. See Trace, and cf.
   Distraught.]
   1. Separated; drawn asunder. [Obs.]
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   2. Insane; mad. [Obs.] --Drayton.
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Distract \Dis*tract"\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Distracted, old p.
   p. Distraught; p. pr. & vb. n. Distracting.]
   1. To draw apart or away; to divide; to disjoin.
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            A city . . . distracted from itself.  --Fuller.
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   2. To draw (the sight, mind, or attention) in different
      directions; to perplex; to confuse; as, to distract the
      eye; to distract the attention.
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            Mixed metaphors . . . distract the imagination.
                                                  --Goldsmith.
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   3. To agitate by conflicting passions, or by a variety of
      motives or of cares; to confound; to harass.
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            Horror and doubt distract
            His troubled thoughts.                --Milton.
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   4. To unsettle the reason of; to render insane; to craze; to
      madden; -- most frequently used in the participle,
      distracted.
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            A poor mad soul; . . . poverty hath distracted her.
                                                  --Shak.
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