Something disturbing worries you or upsets you. It sits in the mind in an uncomfortable way: a disturbing piece of news, a disturbing film, a disturbing silence. The feeling is often a mix of “this is wrong,” “this is sad,” and “I wish I had not seen that,” rather than simple fear. It is common in speech and in writing. Though actually, people stretch it. A teacher may call falling grades disturbing — not scary, but worrying. A joke that crosses a line can be called disturbing too. As an -ing form it can also be the everyday verb: “Stop disturbing your brother,” which is lighter — more “bothering” than “haunting.” The adjective almost always describes the thing that causes the feeling, not the person who feels it. A different form, disturbed, can describe a person whose peace is already broken, and in older or medical talk that can sound like a harsh comment on someone’s mind — a heavier use, and easy to hurt with.