mess around

verb

messed around; messing around; messes around

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.
No more messing around with dials or having to adjust sound levels, for example. Eric Hutto, Forbes.com, 10 July 2025 Not messing around, the company hires Zora (Scarlett Johansson), an experienced soldier of fortune, to lead a team that also includes fellow mercenary Duncan (Mahershala Ali) and Dr. Henry Loomis (Jonathan Bailey), a paleontologist. Keith Phipps, Vulture, 1 July 2025 The track and field season is in full swing, and with an important juncture coming – the 2025 USATF Outdoor Championships in July – Lyles doesn’t really have time to mess around. Cory Mull, Forbes.com, 18 June 2025 Wilson’s ambition, however, was undercut by intensifying, untreated mental illness as well as by drug use (including hashish and amphetamines) and pressure from the other Beach Boys and the group’s label, Capitol, to stop messing around and start cranking out hits. Jason Fine, Rolling Stone, 11 June 2025 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 16 Jul. 2025.

More from Merriam-Webster on mess around

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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