How to say "unrest" in Japanese

• 乱れみだれCommon
  nounCovers unrest as a state of disorder — society or a situation falling out of order rather than an organized conflict. Use it for turmoil where normal order has broken down.
  女性じょせいホルモン分泌ぶんぴつの乱みだれが不妊症ふにんしょうの大おおきな原因げんいんです。↗

  Female hormone imbalance is a major cause of infertility.
• 動乱どうらんCommon
  nounFits unrest on a large scale — political upheaval or disturbance that shakes a nation and may extend to war. The word carries a sense of grave, sweeping turmoil.
• 紛争ふんそうJLPT N1approx.Common
  noun, suru verb, intransitive verbReally the word for dispute or conflict; as 'unrest' it points to unrest that has broken out into open trouble. Choose it when actual confrontation, not just a mood of unease, is involved.
  紛争ふんそうのない人間にんげん社会しゃかいはありえない。↗

  There can be no human society without conflict.
• 動揺どうようJLPT N1approx.Common
  noun, suru verb, intransitive verbUnrest as inner agitation — minds or public sentiment shaken and unsettled. It describes emotional disturbance rather than disorder in the streets, so it is seldom the word for political turmoil.
  このニュースを聞きいて非常ひじょうに動揺どうようした。↗

  I was profoundly disturbed by this news.

Choose 「乱れ」 for unrest as a state of disorder, 動乱 for large-scale political upheaval, 紛争 for unrest that breaks out into open dispute or conflict, and 動揺 for unrest as inner agitation or shaken, unsettled feelings.

Usage comparisons are AI-assisted and cross-checked by multiple models; for study reference only

• 乱れみだれdisorder
• 動乱どうらんdisturbance
• 紛争ふんそうdispute
• 動揺どうようdisturbance
• さざ波さざなみripple (e.g. of uneasiness)