mess around

verb

messed around; messing around; messes around
Synonyms of mess aroundnext

intransitive verb

1
: to waste time : dawdle, idle
2
a
: associate
didn't mess around with gangs

Examples of mess around in a Sentence

spent the vacation day just messing around a guy who goes to the health club mainly to mess around with the women
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
So, get ready to travel to Sweden for a taste of adolescence full of smiles, tears, dancing, messing around – and skateboards. Georg Szalai, HollywoodReporter, 12 Mar. 2026 Guerin has a history of going straight to his final offer — not messing around. Michael Russo, New York Times, 6 Mar. 2026 Morgan had been messing around with a curveball, but didn’t actually throw it until a workout at Petco Park a week before the draft. Jeff Sanders, San Diego Union-Tribune, 26 Feb. 2026 Advertisement Soon afterward, however, at a Red Bull event in Austria, Goepper began messing around on a quarterpipe. Sean Gregory, Time, 18 Feb. 2026 See All Example Sentences for mess around

Word History

First Known Use

1918, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of mess around was in 1918

Cite this Entry

“Mess around.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/mess%20around. Accessed 17 Mar. 2026.

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