murky

adjective

ˈmər-kē 

murkier; murkiest

1

: characterized by a heavy dimness or obscurity caused by or like that caused by overhanging fog or smoke

the murky bottom of the lake

2

: characterized by thickness and heaviness of air : foggy, misty

Handicapped by my seasickness and by the murky skies, I hardly ever could make my star sights work.

—Robert Shenk

3

: darkly vague or obscure

murky official rhetoric

He offered a murky explanation.

murkily

ˈmər-kə-lē 

adverb

murkiness

ˈmər-kē-nəs 

noun

Synonyms of murky

• darkened
• dark

Examples of murky in a Sentence

She peered into one of the church's murky chapels.

a politician with a murky past

Recent Examples on the Web

The Hawaii Department of Health advises people to avoid swimming, wading, or other water contact when the water looks brown, murky or cloudy. —Jen Murphy, Outside, 24 Mar. 2026

The Taliban continue to hold the remains of American Paul Overby, one citizen who has not been named and whose circumstances remain murky, and Habibi — though the Taliban have never acknowledged his case. —Stephen Smith, CBS News, 24 Mar. 2026

In Bensaid's video, she can be seen rowing through murky, brown waters filled with debris. —Mary Walrath-Holdridge, USA Today, 23 Mar. 2026

The timeline after that grows murkier. —Madeline Buckley, Chicago Tribune, 23 Mar. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing murky

• murky waters

Rhymes for murky

• jerky
• perky
• quirky
• turki

Kids Definition

murky

adjective

ˈmər-kē 

murkier; murkiest

1

: very dark or gloomy

2

: foggy sense 1, misty

3

: difficult to understand

a murky reply designed to confuse

murkiness noun