Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • transitive verb To put out of usual or proper place, position, or relationship.
  • transitive verb To displace (a body part), especially to displace a bone from its normal position.
  • transitive verb To throw into confusion or disorder; disrupt.

from The Century Dictionary.

  • To displace; put out of regular place or position; hence, to interrupt the continuity or order of; throw out of order; disjoint; derange.
  • Specifically
  • In surgery, to put out of joint or out of position, as a limb or an organ; particularly, to displace from the socket of the joint, as a bone; luxate; disjoint, as by violence.
  • Dislocated.

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

  • transitive verb To displace; to put out of its proper place. Especially, of a bone: To remove from its normal connections with a neighboring bone; to put out of joint; to move from its socket; to disjoint.
  • adjective Dislocated.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • verb to put something out of its usual place
  • verb medicine to (accidentally) dislodge a skeletal bone from its joint

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

  • verb move out of position
  • verb put out of its usual place, position, or relationship

Etymologies

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition

[Medieval Latin dislocāre, dislocāt- : dis-, dis- + Latin locāre, to place (from locus, place).]

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Examples

  • According to the Office of Medical Services' OMS guidelines, these techniques were designed to "psychologically 'dislocate' the detainee, maximize his feeling of vulnerability and helplessness, and reduce or eliminate his will to resist our efforts to obtain critical intelligence."

    Human Rights First: The Professionalization of Torture Human Rights First 2010

  • According to the Office of Medical Services '(OMS) guidelines, these techniques were designed to "psychologically' dislocate 'the detainee, maximize his feeling of vulnerability and helplessness, and reduce or eliminate his will to resist our efforts to obtain critical intelligence. "

    Human Rights First: The Professionalization of Torture 2010

  • Houdini could walk a tightrope, untie knots with his toes, scale skyscrapers, dislocate his shoulders, and hold his breath for over three minutes.

    The Magician Escapes the Show Lance Esplund 2011

  • And would I say too much if I wonder about the ire that has been directed towards our nation's tenured teachers, with those dislocated by capitalism spitefully seeking to dislocate those given some protection from its excesses?

    Haroon Moghul: Finding Meaning In The Death Of A Teacher Haroon Moghul 2011

  • Not only did this dislocate the growth of the world's third largest economy, but it also disrupted global supply chains, depressing output in key manufacturing sectors such as IT and motor vehicle production around the world.

    The World Doesn't Need More Stimulus Andrew Sentance 2011

  • She adds, I used elastic to give the ligaments realistic stretch, and even gave it the capability to dislocate, just like my real knee.

    Boing Boing 2009

  • And would I say too much if I wonder about the ire that has been directed towards our nation's tenured teachers, with those dislocated by capitalism spitefully seeking to dislocate those given some protection from its excesses?

    Haroon Moghul: Finding Meaning In The Death Of A Teacher Haroon Moghul 2011

  • And would I say too much if I wonder about the ire that has been directed towards our nation's tenured teachers, with those dislocated by capitalism spitefully seeking to dislocate those given some protection from its excesses?

    Haroon Moghul: Finding Meaning In The Death Of A Teacher Haroon Moghul 2011

  • But first, before they staked her, their plan was to dislocate her joints and break the big bones of the arms and legs.

    CHAPTER IV 2010

  • And would I say too much if I wonder about the ire that has been directed towards our nation's tenured teachers, with those dislocated by capitalism spitefully seeking to dislocate those given some protection from its excesses?

    Haroon Moghul: Finding Meaning In The Death Of A Teacher Haroon Moghul 2011

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