noun
tumult
TOO-mult/ˈtuːmʌlt/
A state of noisy confusion or disorder.
The meeting's tumult grows as the women talk over each other.
Etymology
Latin tumultus covered both uproar and disorder, combining loud sound with confused activity. English preserves that combination in the noisy commotion of a crowd or disturbance.
In context
and furious barrier, half-veiled by dense black fumes that writhe, heave, and trail upward in a mist of dirty gray. Heavy black shrapnel, storms of whiz-bangs, add to the deafening tumult
More examples
- Her voice is lost in the tumult of the crowded station.
- The disputed vote throws the meeting into tumult.
- Once the tumult subsides, we can hear the announcer again.
Forms
tumult · tumults
tumultuous adjective — Full of noise, confusion, or disorder.