Ruth B. Smith
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In 1735, British poet Alexander Pope lamented, in rhyme, being besieged by “a parson much bemus’d in beer.” The cleric in question was apparently one of a horde of would-be poets who pestered Pope with requests that he read their verses. Pope meant that the parson had found his muse—his inspiration—in beer. That use of bemused harks back to a 1705 letter in which Pope wrote of “Poets … irrecoverably Be-mus’d.” In both letter and poem, Pope used bemused to allude to being inspired by or devoted to one of the Muses, the Greek sister goddesses of art, music, and literature. The lexicographers who followed him, however, interpreted “bemus’d in beer” as meaning “left confused by beer,” and their confusion gave rise to the “bewilder” sense of bemuse. The newer (and very common) use of bemuse to mean “to cause to have feelings of wry or tolerant amusement” is a topic of some dispute, as discussed here.
Examples of bemuse in a Sentence
Toria Sheffield, People.com, 18 Jan. 2025
The solemn participation of five presidents, current and former, at the state funeral for former President Jimmy Carter at Washington National Cathedral Thursday might well have bemused, well, Jimmy Carter.
—Susan Page, USA TODAY, 10 Jan. 2025
Fans were also asked about having heated seats, eating sushi and drinking prosecco, which bemused many.
—Chris Waugh, The Athletic, 9 Jan. 2025
In many of these works, the father figure becomes a representative of masculinity, or old values, or an adult world that bemuses the young son.
—Lily Meyer, The Atlantic, 23 Dec. 2024
See All Example Sentences for bemuse
Cite this Entry
“Bemuse.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/bemuse. Accessed 4 Jul. 2025.
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bemuse
verb
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