In TOEIC vocabulary questions, disruption is used to describe interruptions to normal business operations.
▪The earthquake caused a disruption in the factory's operations.
▪The earthquake caused an interruption in the factory's operations.
Example of a confusing word: eruption (a volcanic explosion)
▪The earthquake caused an eruption in the factory's operations.
▪The volcano caused an eruption.
"Disruption" refers to a disturbance or interruption in the normal flow of operations, such as in business or production. It fits well in the sentence "The earthquake caused a disruption in the factory's operations," indicating an interruption in the workflow. "Eruption," however, is used to describe a volcanic explosion and is not applicable to business contexts. The sentence "The earthquake caused an eruption in the factory's operations" is grammatically incorrect and semantically illogical, as "eruption" does not relate to business activities. Therefore, "disruption" is the correct choice.
Grammar examples from the TOEIC test
Disruption is a noun and might be tested by choosing synonyms.
▪The disruption affected all the employees.
▪The interruption affected all the employees.
disruption
Idioms and fixed expressions in TOEIC
economic disruption
'financial disturbance', refers to problems in the economy.
▪The economic disruption caused by the pandemic was severe.
▪The financial disturbance caused by the pandemic was severe.
technological disruption
means 'tech problems', refers to changes caused by new technology.
▪Technological disruption is transforming the industry.
▪Tech problems are changing the industry.
Differences between similar words and disruption
disruption
,
interruption
differences
Disruption is a disturbance causing problems in operations, while interruption is a temporary stop.
disruption
▪The event caused a disruption to the operation.
▪The event caused a temporary stop to the operation.
interruption
▪interruption
▪Interruption means a temporary stop, while disruption implies a more serious disturbance.
disruption
,
disturbance
differences
Disruption causes serious issues, while disturbance can be any kind of problem, not necessarily disrupting operations.
disruption
▪There was a disturbance in the meeting.
▪The temporary stop affected all departments.
disturbance
▪The disruption affected all departments.
▪The temporary stop affected all departments.
Words with the same origin as disruption
The origin of disruption
The word's etymology is not clear.
Word structure
The analysis of the word's composition is unclear.
Words with the same origin
The word's root is unclear or difficult to confirm.
