Distract

v. t. [imp. & p. p. DISTRACTED; p. pr. & vb. n. DISTRACTING.] [Lat. distrahere, distractum, from dis and trahere, to draw; It. distraere, distrarre, Sp. distraer, Pg. distrahir, Pr. & Fr. distraire].

1. To draw apart or away; to divide. “A city . . . distracted from itself!” Browne.
2. To perplex by inconsistent appeals; to confuse; as, to distract the eye.

Mixed metaphors . . . distract the imagination. Goldsmith. 3. To agitate by conflicting passions; to confound; to harass. Horror and doubt distract His troubled thoughts. Milton. 4. To unsettle the reason of; to render insane; to craze; — most frequently used in the participle distracted. You shall see a distracted man fancy himself a king. Locke. A poor mad soul, . . . poverty hath distracted her. Shak.