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

b

: flirt, philander

Synonyms of mess around

• play
• fool around
• goof (around)
• fiddle (around)
• hang about
• putter (around)
• potter (around)
• monkey (around)
• kick around

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

In the email, Dixon suggested that the fire department employee may have messed around with the department's equipment. —Adam Thompson, CBS News, 5 Feb. 2026

The new rule of thumb when prognosticating about the NBA trade deadline is to never say never — Luka Doncic is a Los Angeles Laker now — but the Nuggets are just too good to mess around with their playoff rotation over a tax bill. —Bennett Durando, Denver Post, 1 Feb. 2026

Skechers Cleo Taylor Loafers Comfortable shoes can make or break a travel day, and Aura doesn’t mess around. —Rosie Marder, Travel + Leisure, 1 Feb. 2026

Other standouts include a Maybelline mascara and a Black and Decker handheld vacuum, which makes quick work of small messes around the house and in the car. —Isabel Garcia, PEOPLE, 30 Jan. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1918, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for mess around

• aboveground
• battleground
• belowground
• paperbound
• turnaround
• ultrasound
• underground
• wraparound
• abound
• aground
• astound
• background