bewilder

verb

be·​wil·​der bi-ˈwil-dər 

bē-

bewildered; bewildering bi-ˈwil-d(ə-)riŋ 

bē-

transitive verb

1

: to cause to lose one's bearings (see bearing sense 6c)

bewildered by the city's maze of roads

2

: to perplex or confuse especially by a complexity, variety, or multitude of objects or considerations

His decision bewildered her.

utterly bewildered by the instructions

bewilderedly adverb

bewilderedness noun

Synonyms

• addle
• baffle
• bamboozle
• beat
• befog
• befuddle
• bemuse
• buffalo
• confound
• confuse
• discombobulate
• disorient
• flummox
• fox
• fuddle
• get
• gravel
• maze
• muddle
• muddy
• mystify
• perplex
• pose
• puzzle
• vex

Choose the Right Synonym for bewilder

puzzle, perplex, bewilder, distract, nonplus, confound, dumbfound mean to baffle and disturb mentally.

puzzle implies existence of a problem difficult to solve.

the persistent fever puzzled the doctor

perplex adds a suggestion of worry and uncertainty especially about making a necessary decision.

a behavior that perplexed her friends

bewilder stresses a confusion of mind that hampers clear and decisive thinking.

a bewildering number of possibilities

distract implies agitation or uncertainty induced by conflicting preoccupations or interests.

distracted by personal problems

nonplus implies a bafflement that makes orderly planning or deciding impossible.

the remark left us utterly nonplussed

confound implies temporary mental paralysis caused by astonishment or profound abasement.

the tragic news confounded us all

dumbfound suggests intense but momentary confounding; often the idea of astonishment is so stressed that it becomes a near synonym of astound.

was at first too dumbfounded to reply

Examples of bewilder in a Sentence

the change in policy seems to have bewildered many of our customers

Recent Examples on the Web

They were bewildered for me, and so was all the other staff. —Thomas G. Moukawsher, MSNBC Newsweek, 24 Apr. 2025

Small wonder many of the migrants are disoriented and bewildered. —Foreign Affairs, 22 Apr. 2025

Madrid led 3-1 at the break and United’s players walked off the pitch bewildered. —Andy Mitten, New York Times, 20 Apr. 2025

At the Super Bowl, Bieber was seen dancing atop a VIP suite sofa shirtless and barefoot, bewildering nearby spectators. —Shirley Halperin, HollywoodReporter, 16 Apr. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1633, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for bewilder

• shipbuilder
• builder
• gilder
• guilder

Kids Definition

bewilder

verb

be·​wil·​der bi-ˈwil-dər 

bewildered; bewildering -d(ə-)riŋ 

: to confuse especially with a great many things to worry about

bewilderingly

-d(ə-)riŋ-lē 

adverb

bewilderment

-dər-mənt

noun