as in to bewilder
to throw into a state of mental uncertainty
most of the applicants were befuddled by the wording of one of the questions on the driving test
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Recent Examples of befuddle
The Padres were mostly befuddled by Giants starter Kai-Wei Teng for three innings last night.
—
Kevin Acee, San Diego Union-Tribune, 20 Aug. 2025
Solving novel, complex problems will continue to befuddle AI, not only because there are many steps and unknowns, but also because AI lacks our spatial and emotional understanding of the world.
—Jennifer L. Steele, The Conversation, 15 Aug. 2025
For those counties that stayed on the list during its short life, its makeup befuddled some commissioners, who didn't understand why they were included.
—Seth Klamann, Denver Post, 18 July 2025
Gonzalez quickly drove him in with an RBI triple, which befuddled center fielder Brenton Doyle.
—Gabrielle Starr, Boston Herald, 9 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for befuddle
Kevin Acee, San Diego Union-Tribune, 20 Aug. 2025
Solving novel, complex problems will continue to befuddle AI, not only because there are many steps and unknowns, but also because AI lacks our spatial and emotional understanding of the world.
—Jennifer L. Steele, The Conversation, 15 Aug. 2025
For those counties that stayed on the list during its short life, its makeup befuddled some commissioners, who didn't understand why they were included.
—Seth Klamann, Denver Post, 18 July 2025
Gonzalez quickly drove him in with an RBI triple, which befuddled center fielder Brenton Doyle.
—Gabrielle Starr, Boston Herald, 9 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for befuddle
Recent Examples of Synonyms for befuddle
Verb
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And aren’t our real-life romantic complications bewildering enough?—
Stephanie Zacharek,
Time,
4 Sep. 2025
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Its ginormous investments in higher-value, tech-heavy sectors from smartphones to autos to semiconductors to biotechnology are disrupting the global landscape at bewildering speed.—
William Pesek,
Forbes.com,
27 Aug. 2025
Verb
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For nearly 20 years, astronomers have been perplexed by the strange disk of dust and debris circling Fomalhaut, a bright star just 25 light-years from Earth.—
Rupendra Brahambhatt,
Interesting Engineering,
7 Sep. 2025
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Many historians have been perplexed by how such a seemingly simple man as Shakespeare could have written works of such grandeur and depth.—
Bilge Ebiri,
Vulture,
30 Aug. 2025
Verb
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Yes, God confuses the language and scatters everyone, thereby creating linguistic and cultural diversity.—
John Fugelsang
September 12,
Literary Hub,
12 Sep. 2025
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At one point, O’Steen was confused by a question, and the resulting back-and-forth was reminiscent of an Abbott and Costello repartee.—
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
12 Sep. 2025
Verb
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The result is a set of policies that has baffled some China experts, or at least raised questions about the president’s stance on America’s friendly rival.—
Christian Datoc,
The Washington Examiner,
12 Sep. 2025
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In the last few years, researchers have stumbled upon baffling signals from deep space, uncovered strange features hiding beneath our oceans, and found clues that hint at life’s secrets on other worlds.—
Kaif Shaikh,
Interesting Engineering,
11 Sep. 2025
Verb
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When Amy Astley became editor-in-chief of Architectural Digest in 2016, many in the design world were puzzled.—
Jane Hanson,
Forbes.com,
14 Sep. 2025
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Staying away from puzzling lines like this is typically the best move.—
Tyler Everett,
MSNBC Newsweek,
10 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Befuddle.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/befuddle. Accessed 15 Sep. 2025.
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