bewildered

adjective

be·​wil·​dered bi-ˈwil-dərd 

bē-

: deeply or utterly confused or perplexed

I was appalled and was too bewildered to do or say anything.

—Bram Stoker

He looked at her with a bewildered expression.

Speaking for myself, I stumbled into motherhood and was bewildered at the shift of gears, the volte-face required to reorient myself, my values and my way of life into being a carer of small children.

—Madeleine Bunting

Synonyms of bewildered

• dazed
• confused
• stunned
• distracted
• dizzy

Examples of bewildered in a Sentence

the bewildered child wandered aimlessly around the playground

Recent Examples on the Web

At the risk of sounding less like a columnist and more like a bewildered bystander … what the heck happened? —Denise Crosby, Chicago Tribune, 14 June 2026

Urged by a call from Hugo to destroy her phone and flee Kansas City fast, before WARDEX can get to her, Margaret also hits the road, accompanied initially by a bewildered Jackson. —David Rooney, HollywoodReporter, 9 June 2026

Kelli cries over how solid the Mwangi unit is, praising Gerald as a father and husband and affirming that Shamea’s ass is real, while everyone else looks on, bewildered. —Ile-Ife Okantah, Vulture, 8 June 2026

Karl-Anthony Towns, who was on the podium with him, took off his glasses and looked at his teammate with a bewildered expression. —Ryan Canfield, FOXNews.com, 22 May 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1760, in the meaning defined above