View synonyms for

befuddled

[ bih-fuhd-ld ]

Phonetic (Standard)IPA

adjective

confused or muddled:
They claim this is the prevailing economic theory, taught in the best schools, and that I am a hopelessly befuddled fool for questioning it.
puzzled or perplexed:
People often ask us—usually with a befuddled look on their face—"Why on earth are you doing this?"
stupidly drunk:
I don't think he's sobered up at all—in fact, he looks almost frighteningly befuddled and out of it.

verb

the simple past tense and past participle of befuddle.

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Word History and Origins

Origin of befuddled¹

First recorded in 1830–40; befuddle + -ed ²( def ) for the adjective senses; befuddle + -ed ¹( def ) for the verb sense

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Example Sentences

Examples have not been reviewed.

Lost in the haze of Trump’s befuddled narcissism and fascism is the often ignored reality: this is not normal.

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People were befuddled by Francis Ford Coppola’s decades-in-the-making passion project, a rococo take on the collapse of an empire.

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That’s all nonsense too, but I remain especially befuddled by the insinuation that it’s somehow sinister or unpatriotic for “entities” “controlled” by “domestic companies” to oppose tariffs.

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They have all portrayed Dr. John Watson, the inquisitive physician and sometimes befuddled companion to legendary detective Sherlock Holmes.

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Dozier argued, however, that Sindle had been so befuddled and contradictory on the stand that the jury likely didn’t believe her anyway, rendering it moot that her testimony was both false and given under duress.

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Related Words

befuddle beg

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