Disconnected means separated or cut off from something that was once joined together. When your phone loses its Wi-Fi signal, it becomes disconnected from the internet. When a power cord gets unplugged, the lamp is disconnected from electricity and won't turn on.

The word also describes feelings of isolation or lack of understanding. A student might feel disconnected from classmates after missing several weeks of school, like everyone else shares experiences and inside jokes they don't understand. Someone watching a confusing movie might say the scenes felt disconnected, jumping around without clear connections between events.

You can also feel disconnected from your own thoughts or surroundings, like when you're so tired in the morning that you feel foggy and disconnected, as if you're watching yourself from far away instead of being fully present.

The opposite of disconnected is connected: plugged in, linked up, part of something. When you reconnect with an old friend after years apart, you're building that connection again.