Is it ok to say
Put things in disorder
meaning making a mess of things?
Or does it sound weird?
I'm asking because apparently the phrase 'put things in order' exists and is totally fine.
How about the opposite?
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It is a little odd. The word "put" suggests a methodical approach of deliberately placing things in a certain way. But disorder suggests a lack of such a method.
I'd prefer
disorder things.
or more naturally, your expression:
make a mess (of things).
In specific contexts (such as a method to randomly disorder a list) you can use "shuffle" or "randomize".
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1Another word that comes to mind is "scramble". – Fred Larson Apr 14 '21 at 16:03
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"Throw" is a good verb to replace "put" here. I've certainly heard people refer to things being thrown into disorder before. – Admiral Jota Apr 14 '21 at 17:43
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@FredLarson thank you! Can I say, 'I don't like when people scramble my things'? – i_yre_b Apr 14 '21 at 18:23
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1@AdmiralJota thank you! – i_yre_b Apr 14 '21 at 18:25
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3It would work as a deliberate play on words, kind of like a "ruly crowd" or "kempt hair". But yeah, it would not be common usage by any means. – Darrel Hoffman Apr 14 '21 at 21:29