Meaning & use
public disturbance
Last updated
Meanings
nouncountable
a noisy, violent, or disorderly event that disrupts peace in a public place
Grammar: Countable: you can say 'a public disturbance' or 'public disturbances'. It is often used in legal contexts.
Patterns
- cause a public disturbance
- arrested for a public disturbance
- a public disturbance charge
He was arrested for causing a public disturbance outside the stadium.
Police were called to deal with a public disturbance in the town center.
The protest turned into a public disturbance when fights broke out.
nouncountablelegallaw
the legal offense of disrupting the peace in a public place
Grammar: Often used with 'of' or in legal phrases like 'charged with public disturbance'.
Patterns
- charged with public disturbance
- convicted of public disturbance
- a public disturbance offense
She was charged with public disturbance after shouting in the library.
In some states, public disturbance is a misdemeanor.
The judge fined him for public disturbance.
Word forms
| plural | public disturbances |
|---|
Common combinations
- cause a public disturbance
- The loud music caused a public disturbance late at night.
- arrested for a public disturbance
- Two men were arrested for a public disturbance.
- charged with public disturbance
- He was charged with public disturbance and fined.
- a public disturbance charge
- She is facing a public disturbance charge.
Synonyms and how they differ
- breach of the peace
- A more formal legal term that covers a wider range of disruptive behavior, not just in public places.
- disorderly conduct
- A legal term for disruptive behavior, often used in the US; it can include actions that are not necessarily noisy.
- riot
- A much more serious and violent event involving a crowd, while a public disturbance can be smaller and less violent.
Opposites
Word family
- disturb verb
- To interrupt or upset the normal state of something.
- disturbance noun
- A general word for an interruption or disruption.
Commonly confused: public disturbance or disturbing the peace?
public disturbance vs disturbing the peace
This is a common legal phrase similar in meaning, but it is not a direct synonym; 'public disturbance' often refers to the event itself, while 'disturbing the peace' is the act.
Practice
The police were called after a ______ at the concert.
Choose one answer.
The sentence needs a noun phrase after 'a'. 'Public disturbance' is the correct noun phrase. 'Publicly disturb' is a verb phrase, 'public disturbing' is not a standard noun, and 'publicly disturbance' wrongly uses an adverb to modify a noun.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “public disturbance”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.