meddle

verb med·dle \ ˈme-dᵊl \

Definition of meddle

meddled; meddling play \ˈmed-liŋ, ˈme-dᵊl-iŋ\

intransitive verb

:to interest oneself in what is not one's concern :interfere without right or propriety (see propriety 3)

I never meddle in other people's private affairs
—G. B. Shaw

—

meddler

play \ˈmed-lər, ˈme-dᵊl-ər\ noun

See meddle defined for English-language learners

See meddle defined for kids

Examples of meddle in a Sentence

please stop meddling in your sister's marriage, even though you mean well

Recent Examples of meddle from the Web

For more than 20 years, researchers have fretted about the effects of endocrine disruptors, molecules that meddle with the body's hormones.

— mitch leslie, Science | AAAS, "Something is changing the sex of Costa Rican crocodiles," 30 Aug. 2017
Putin has long rejected claims that the Kremlin had anything to do with meddling in last year’s elections.

— terrell jermaine starr, The Root, "How Russia Used Racism to Hack White Voters," 9 Aug. 2017
Trump’s critics contend that any effort by the White House to meddle with the probe would represent a brazen affront to the rule of law.

— mckay coppins, The Atlantic, "What Republicans Could Do About Trump," 3 Aug. 2017
In a region so closely situated to the power-wielding (and historically quick-to-meddle) US, any kind of intervention in another country’s affairs has long been considered taboo.

— whitney eulich, The Christian Science Monitor, "Constituent Assembly: Why Venezuela voted, and why it matters," 1 Aug. 2017
In response, the president has repeatedly sought to cast doubt on whether or not Russia meddled at all, and has thus attempted to single-handedly refute, without evidence, the conclusions of U.S. intelligence agencies.

— chas danner, Daily Intelligencer, "White House Says Trump Will Sign Russia Sanctions Bill, Avoiding Veto Fight With Congress," 29 July 2017
Relations between the two countries, already at a post-Cold War low, have deteriorated even further after U.S. intelligence agencies accused Russia of trying to meddle in last year's U.S. presidential election, something Moscow flatly denies.

— geoffrey smith, Fortune, "Russia Is Expelling U.S. Diplomats in Retaliation for New Sanctions," 28 July 2017
And now that Russians aren’t just suspicious, but actively meddling in American elections, Soviet bad guys aren’t just topical—

— ella donald, HWD, "From Russia, With Love: the Sudden Resurgence of the Soviet Villain," 28 July 2017
Accusations that Moscow meddled in the election and colluded with the Trump campaign have dominated Trump's first months in office.

— reuters, Alaska Dispatch News, "Ex-Soviet agent was at meeting between Trump Jr. and Russian lawyer," 14 July 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'meddle.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of meddle

Middle English medlen, from Anglo-French mesler, medler, from Vulgar Latin *misculare, from Latin miscēre to mix — more at mix

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First Known Use: 14th century

See Words from the same year

meddle Synonyms

Synonyms

butt in, interlope, intermeddle, intrude, interfere, mess, muck (about or around), nose, obtrude, poke, pry, snoop

Related Words

intercede, interpose, intervene; barge (in), chisel (in), encroach, infringe, invade, trespass; fiddle, fool, monkey, play, tamper

Near Antonyms

avoid, eschew, shun; disregard, ignore, neglect, overlook

MEDDLE Defined for English Language Learners

meddle

verb

Definition of meddle for English Language Learners

: to become involved in the activities and concerns of other people when your involvement is not wanted
: to change or handle something in a way that is unwanted or harmful

MEDDLE Defined for Kids

meddle

verb med·dle \ ˈme-dᵊl \

Definition of meddle for Students

meddled; meddling

:to be overly involved in someone else's business

Synonym Discussion of meddle

meddle, interfere, and tamper mean to get involved with something that is someone else's business. meddle is used for intruding in an inconsiderate and annoying fashion.