CHAOS | English meaning - Cambridge Dictionary
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English (UK)

Meaning of chaos in English

chaos
noun [ U ]
uk
/ˈkeɪ.ɒs/ us
/ˈkeɪ.ɑːs/
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B2
a state of total confusion with no order:
Snow and ice have caused chaos on the roads.
Ever since our secretary walked out, the office has been in a state of total/utter chaos.
We muddled up the name labels and chaos ensued (= resulted).
Synonyms
anarchy
bedlam
commotion
confusion
disarray formal
disorder (CONFUSION)
disorganization
havoc
kerfuffle UK informal
mayhem
pandemonium
tumult formal
turmoil
uproar
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SMART Vocabulary: related words and phrases
Social order & disorder
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You can also find related words, phrases, and synonyms in the topics:
(Definition of chaos from the Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary & Thesaurus © Cambridge University Press)

chaos | American Dictionary

chaos
noun [ U ]
us
/ˈkeɪ·ɑs/
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a state of disorder and confusion:
Repairs to the major highway this summer will bring chaos to commuters.

chaotic

adjective us
/keɪˈɑt̬·ɪk/
The house is a little chaotic right now – we’re in the middle of repainting.
(Definition of chaos from the Cambridge Academic Content Dictionary © Cambridge University Press)

Examples of chaos

chaos
This can be developed by saying that an 'organic' growth, without the structuring element of some kind of framework, is chaos.
From the Cambridge English Corpus
These results showed that chaos can only be found when there is sufficient lateral excitation.
From the Cambridge English Corpus
Progressives believed that dirt and disorder created chaos and made it difficult for citizens to lift themselves out of poverty.
From the Cambridge English Corpus
Instead, it was a series of ad hoc measures implemented in a struggle to prevent chaos and to stop revolutionary turmoil.
From the Cambridge English Corpus
However, chaos may be just the elixir needed to facilitate information storage.
From the Cambridge English Corpus
Both were afraid not only of alienating allies, but also of vagrancy and chaos within their domains.
From the Cambridge English Corpus
Therefore, even in the regime of quantum chaos, the computer can be used reliably for some time, although it is eventually destroyed.
From the Cambridge English Corpus
As two resonance zones grow and eventually overlap, invariant curves between them will be destroyed, resulting in the onset of widespread chaos.
From the Cambridge English Corpus
Instead of dismissing this 'disease' as pathological chaos, a better approach is to ask what motivated people to rebel.
From the Cambridge English Corpus
It is not chaos, but an organization (a pattern, a process that produces this pattern, or a function that the system aims to fulfil).
From the Cambridge English Corpus
Different pulses and rhythmic figures are eventually added to reach a more dissonant climax, where crashing gamelan-type sounds depict the chaos of the title.
From the Cambridge English Corpus
We will discuss statistical mechanics and chaos, in turn.
From the Cambridge English Corpus
The fact that there has been no panic or chaos also reflects a degree of maturity among the populace.
From the Cambridge English Corpus
It may be possible to update the white-noise background systematically so that it, rather than the kernels, can represent a chaos developing under non-linear interactions.
From the Cambridge English Corpus
Indirectly, it acknowledges that a philosophy of cosmic chaos can be a powerful protective factor, and an effective post-war healer of traumatic stress.
From the Cambridge English Corpus
These examples are from corpora and from sources on the web. Any opinions in the examples do not represent the opinion of the Cambridge Dictionary editors or of Cambridge University Press or its licensors.

Collocations with chaos

chaos

These are words often used in combination with chaos.

Click on a collocation to see more examples of it.

absolute chaos
As we have seen, this did not necessarily mean bringing planning to bear on a state of absolute chaos.
From the Cambridge English Corpus
complete chaos
My feeling is if we abolished the government now, already there would be complete chaos.
From the Cambridge English Corpus
deterministic chaos
I would say the evidence for low-dimensional deterministic chaos in economic and financial data is pretty weak.
From the Cambridge English Corpus
These examples are from corpora and from sources on the web. Any opinions in the examples do not represent the opinion of the Cambridge Dictionary editors or of Cambridge University Press or its licensors.
See all collocations with chaos
What is the pronunciation of chaos?
 

Translations of chaos

in Chinese (Traditional)
混亂, 無秩序狀態…
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in Chinese (Simplified)
混乱, 无秩序状态…
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in Spanish
caos, caos [masculine]…
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in Portuguese
caos, caos [masculine]…
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in more languages
in Marathi
in Japanese
in Turkish
in French
in Catalan
in Dutch
in Tamil
in Hindi
in Gujarati
in Danish
in Swedish
in Malay
in German
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in Urdu
in Ukrainian
in Russian
in Telugu
in Arabic
in Bengali
in Czech
in Indonesian
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in Vietnamese
in Polish
in Korean
in Italian
गोंधळ, अनागोंदी…
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大混乱, 混乱（こんらん）…
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kargaşa, kaos, karışıklık…
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chaos [masculine], chaos…
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caos…
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chaos…
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எந்த உத்தரவும் இல்லாமல் மொத்த குழப்பத்தின் நிலை…
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अफरातफरी…
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રોગચાળો…
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virvar, kaos…
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kaos…
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huru-hara…
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das Chaos…
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kaos [neuter], kaos…
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افرا تفری, بدنظمی…
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хаос, безладдя…
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хаос…
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అవకతవక/గజిబిజి/ఒక క్రమపద్ధతి లేని గందరగోళ పరిస్థితి…
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فَوضى…
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বিশৃঙ্খলা, নৈরাজ্য…
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chaos…
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kekacauan…
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ความยุ่งเหยิง…
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sự hỗn loạn…
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chaos…
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혼란…
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caos…
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