upsets

1. 1
   verb

   Third-person singular simple present of upset.

   A sudden change in the forecast upsets all of our weekend plans.

   A strong gust upsets the small boat just off the shore.

   Note

   Here is the one verb form that wears an ending. The base form, past tense and past participle are all spelled upset, so this present-tense form is the only one whose spelling shows its tense. It usually takes an object: news upsets a person, a gust upsets a boat. It can also stand alone when the thing itself tips over, as in the canoe upsets easily.

2. 2
   noun

   Plural of upset.

   This season produced more upsets than even the most hopeful fans expected.

   Minor digestive upsets often follow a sudden change in diet.

   Note

   The plural belongs to the countable uses of the noun: surprise wins (a season of upsets), bouts of stomach trouble (digestive upsets), and, in aviation, episodes where an aircraft's attitude or airspeed leaves its designed bounds. Mathematicians count upsets too, meaning upper sets in a partially ordered set. When the meaning is general disturbance, which is uncountable, English keeps the singular: the move caused upset, not upsets.

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