Dictionary
Thesaurus
Reference
Translate
Web
confuse
5 dictionary results for: Confuse
Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1) - Cite This Source - Share This
con·fuse       [kuhn-fyooz] Pronunciation Key
–verb (used with object), -fused, -fus·ing.
1.to perplex or bewilder: The flood of questions confused me.
2.to make unclear or indistinct: The rumors and angry charges tended to confuse the issue.
3.to fail to distinguish between; associate by mistake; confound: to confuse dates; He always confuses the twins.
4.to disconcert or abash: His candor confused her.
5.to combine without order; jumble; disorder: Try not to confuse the papers on the desk.
6.Archaic. to bring to ruin or naught.
[Origin: back formation from confused (since early 19th century), ME confused < AF confus (with -ed -ed2 maintaining participial sense) < L confūsus, ptp. of confundere; see confound]

—Related forms
con·fus·a·ble, adjective
con·fus·a·bil·i·ty, noun
con·fus·a·bly, adverb
con·fus·ed·ly       [kuhn-fyoo-zid-lee, -fyoozd-] Pronunciation Key, adverb
con·fus·ed·ness, noun

—Synonyms 1. mystify, nonplus. Confuse, disconcert, embarrass imply temporary interference with the clear working of one's mind. To confuse is to produce a general bewilderment: to confuse someone by giving complicated directions. To disconcert is to disturb one's mind by irritation, perplexities, etc.: to disconcert someone by asking irrelevant questions. To embarrass is to cause one to be ill at ease or uncomfortable, so that one's usual judgment and presence of mind desert one: to embarrass someone by unexpected rudeness. 4. mortify, shame. 5. disarray, disarrange, disturb.
Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1)
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.
CITE THIS SOURCE|PRINT
American Heritage Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
con·fuse       (kən-fyōōz')  Pronunciation Key 
v.   con·fused, con·fus·ing, con·fus·es

v.   tr.
    1. To cause to be unable to think with clarity or act with intelligence or understanding; throw off.
    2. To cause to feel embarrassment.
    3. To mistake (for another): confused effusiveness with affection.
    4. To make opaque; blur: "The old labels ... confuse debate instead of clarifying it" (Christopher Lasch).
    5. To assemble without order or sense; jumble.
    1. To mistake (for another): confused effusiveness with affection.
    2. To make opaque; blur: "The old labels ... confuse debate instead of clarifying it" (Christopher Lasch).
    3. To assemble without order or sense; jumble.
  3. Archaic To bring to ruination.

v.   intr.
To make something unclear or incomprehensible: a new tax code that only further confuses.


[Middle English confusen, from Old French confus, perplexed, from Latin cōnfūsus, past participle of cōnfundere, to mix together; see confound.]

con·fus'a·ble adj., con·fus'ing·ly adv.
Synonyms: These verbs mean to cause to be unclear in mind or intent: heavy traffic that confused the driver; problems that addle my brain; a question that befuddled even the professor; was discombobulated by all of the possibilities; a complex plot line that fuddled my comprehension; a student who was muddled by endless facts and figures; behavior that really threw me.

(Download Now or Buy the Book)
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
CITE THIS SOURCE|PRINT
WordNet - Cite This Source - Share This
confuse

verb
1. mistake one thing for another; "you are confusing me with the other candidate"; "I mistook her for the secretary" 
2. be confusing or perplexing to; cause to be unable to think clearly; "These questions confuse even the experts"; "This question completely threw me"; "This question befuddled even the teacher" 
3. cause to feel embarrassment; "The constant attention of the young man confused her" 
4. assemble without order or sense; "She jumbles the words when she is supposed to write a sentence" [syn: jumble] 
5. make unclear, indistinct, or blurred; "Her remarks confused the debate"; "Their words obnubilate their intentions" 

WordNet® 3.0, © 2006 by Princeton University.
CITE THIS SOURCE|PRINT
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This

Confuse

Con*fuse"\, a. [F. confus, L. confusus, p. p. of confundere. See Confound.] Mixed; confounded. [Obs.] --Baret.

Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
CITE THIS SOURCE|PRINT
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This

Confuse

Con*fuse"\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Confused; p. pr. & vb. n. Confusing.]

1. To mix or blend so that things can not be distinguished; to jumble together; to confound; to render indistinct or obscure; as, to confuse accounts; to confuse one's vision.

A universal hubbub wild Of stunning sounds and voices all confused. --Milton.

2. To perplex; to disconcert; to abash; to cause to lose self-possession.

Nor thou with shadowed hint confuse A life that leads melodious days. --Tennyson.

Confused and sadly she at length replied. --Pope.

Syn: To abash; disorder; disarrange; disconcert; confound; obscure; distract. See Abash.

Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
CITE THIS SOURCE|PRINT
Share This:Share This: digg.comShare This: ma.gnolia.comShare This: www.stumbleupon.comShare This: del.icio.usShare This: FacebookShare This: favorites.live.comShare This: www.technorati.comShare This: furl.netShare This: myweb2.search.yahoo.comShare This: www.google.com