The verb upset can mean either “to overturn” (to upset a table, a glass of water) or, more commonly, “to disturb mentally or emotionally” (The incident upset her). When applied to people and their internal state, upset implies a degree of distress, sometimes even anger. The synonym fluster suggests agitated confusion, and it is often used in situations when a person is taken off guard or is discombobulated by unanticipated behavior. If, for instance, you are giving an important presentation at work, and someone, seemingly out of the blue, asks you a series of vaguely antagonistic questions—well, that might fluster you! In such a situation, unless you are a seasoned pro, you might lose your train of thought and struggle to get back on track.

The verb commemorate usually refers to the observance of an already established holiday or anniversary dedicated to remembering a person or event of the past (to commemorate Bastille Day). Though this word is sometimes used to talk about somber circumstances (to commemorate the dead by a moment of silence), commemorate is more commonly paired with uplifting terms: we commemorate victories, anniversaries, and great and historic things. The synonym memorialize is a bit more personal, and is very strongly associated with honoring or preserving the memory of those who have departed. When people memorialize something, they usually do so in some specified way: The town council decided to memorialize the late mayor with an annual day. The Lincoln Memorial was created to memorialize Lincoln in an enduring marble sculpture, just as an engraved urn—or a memorial service—memorializes a loved one.

An award is something given as a reward for merit or distinction. Someone who wins an award may receive a monetary reward or a trophy, medal, ribbon, or certificate. The noun accolade can be used as a synonym for award, although, if your goal is to be purely informative or you are referring to a specific award, accolade in American English may come off sounding unnatural, or extra. Accolade can mean any award, honor, or public expression of praise, such as a five-star review or a laudatory statement from a notable person or group. In fact, accolade is most frequently used to refer to an instance of praise (The play received accolades from the press), or as a catch-all that covers multiple forms of recognition, which may explain why this word is usually found in the plural form. Whereas award by itself has fairly neutral connotations—it is equally applicable to your third-grade spelling prize and an Oscar—the word accolade tends to suggest a prestigious award, a high honor, or high, enthusiastic praise. The prestige implied by accolade is perhaps a vestige of its earliest meaning: a light touch on the shoulder with the flat side of the sword or formerly by an embrace, done in the ceremony of conferring knighthood.