Nearby Words

muddled

[muhd-l] Example Sentences Origin

mud·dle

[muhd-l] verb, -dled, -dling, noun
verb (used with object)
1.
to mix up in a confused or bungling manner; jumble.
2.
to cause to become mentally confused.
3.
to cause to become confused or stupid with or as if with an intoxicating drink.
4.
to make muddy or turbid, as water.
5.
to mix or stir (a cocktail, chocolate, etc.).
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6.
Ceramics. to smooth (clay) by rubbing it on glass.
COLLAPSE
verb (used without object)
7.
to behave, proceed, or think in a confused or aimless fashion or with an air of improvisation: Some people just muddle along, waiting for their big break.

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Muddled is always a great word to know.
So is flibbertigibbet. Does it mean:
a stew of meat, vegetables, potatoes, etc.
a chattering or flighty, light-headed person.
noun
8.
the state or condition of being muddled, especially a confused mental state.
9.
a confused, disordered, or embarrassing condition; mess.
10.
muddle through, to achieve a certain degree of success but without much skill, polish, experience, or direction: None of us knew much about staging a variety show, so we just had to muddle through.

Origin:
1540–50; mud + -le; cognate with Middle Dutch moddelen to muddy

mud·dled·ness, mud·dle·ment, noun
mud·dling·ly, adverb
pre·mud·dle, noun, verb (used with object), -dled, -dling.
un·mud·dled, adjective


1. confuse, botch, bungle, spoil.

Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2012.
Cite This Source Link To muddled
Example Sentences
  • First of a three-part series on muddled federal wetland regulations.
  • Nevertheless, the message may be already getting muddled.
  • Official denials so far have been muddled and unconvincing.
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Collins
World English Dictionary
muddle (ˈmʌdəl)
 
vb
1.  (often foll by up) to mix up (objects, items, etc); jumble
2.  to confuse
3.  to make (water) muddy or turbulent
4.  (US) to mix or stir (alcoholic drinks, etc)
 
n
5.  a state of physical or mental confusion
 
[C16: perhaps from Middle Dutch moddelen to make muddy]
 
'muddled
 
adj
 
'muddledness
 
n
 
'muddlement
 
n
 
'muddling
 
adj, —n
 
'muddlingly
 
adv
 
'muddly
 
adj

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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Etymonline
Word Origin & History

muddle
1590s, perhaps frequentative of mud (q.v.), or from Du. moddelen "to make (water) muddy," from the same P.Gmc. source. Sense of "make confused" first recorded 1680s. Related: Muddled; muddling.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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Slang Dictionary

muddled (up) definition


  1. mod.
    alcohol intoxicated. : I've had a little too much muddler, I think. Anyway, I'm muddled.
Dictionary of American Slang and Colloquial Expressions by Richard A. Spears.Fourth Edition.
Copyright 2007. Published by McGraw Hill.
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