as in perplexing
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as in baffling
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 befuddling
Justin Ray, New York Times, 15 Mar. 2026
The befuddling ballroom renovations are one thing, but the recent unrest in Minnesota is something entirely different.
—Kyle Denis, Billboard, 29 Jan. 2026
McCarthy had shown flashes of brilliance during the season but his inability to connect with star wide receiver Justin Jefferson had been a befuddling question mark throughout the season.
—Ryan Gaydos, FOXNews.com, 21 Dec. 2025
That's why makes Seattle's decision to part ways with Martinez that much more befuddling.
—Matthew Schmidt, MSNBC Newsweek, 3 Sep. 2025
Zev Fima, CNBC, 2 Mar. 2026
Desire Doue let the ball run through his legs, befuddling his marker to such a degree that the only sensible reaction was laughter.
—Jack Lang, New York Times, 26 Feb. 2026
The left-hander from California struck out nine Michigan State Spartans in Sunday's 4-0 victory at UFCU Disch-Falk Field, befuddling his overmatched victims with an electric breaking ball.
—David Eckert, Austin American Statesman, 23 Feb. 2026
Many applicants have received identical messages lately, befuddling students as well as lab heads who may be used to hearing about rejections but not a string of applications simply returned without review.
—Jonathan Wosen, STAT, 11 Feb. 2026
He was less intimidated by its befuddling organization and had grown accustomed to the antiquated spellings and the nearly illegible, unpunctuated scribblings of harried seventeenth-century officials.
—Literary Hub, 28 Jan. 2026
Atlanta then declined to pick up Kinley’s option for 2026, which was a bit befuddling at the time.
—Tyler Estep, AJC.com, 16 Jan. 2026
The idea of a Russian doing academic research on Iraq was utterly befuddling to Maher and his colleagues.
—Elizabeth Tsurkov, The Atlantic, 11 Jan. 2026
Technically, anyway, the Chiefs-Colts game on Sunday at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium wasn’t a knockout game for the befuddling 5-5 home team in jeopardy of missing the playoffs after three straight Super Bowl berths.
—Kansas City Star, 24 Nov. 2025
Adjective
Among them is Xander Schauffele, who had a befuddling ball-striking day.
—Justin Ray, New York Times, 15 Mar. 2026
The befuddling ballroom renovations are one thing, but the recent unrest in Minnesota is something entirely different.
—Kyle Denis, Billboard, 29 Jan. 2026
McCarthy had shown flashes of brilliance during the season but his inability to connect with star wide receiver Justin Jefferson had been a befuddling question mark throughout the season.
—Ryan Gaydos, FOXNews.com, 21 Dec. 2025
That's why makes Seattle's decision to part ways with Martinez that much more befuddling.
—Matthew Schmidt, MSNBC Newsweek, 3 Sep. 2025
Verb
Shares are erasing some of those two-day losses on Monday, but our overarching point about the befuddling post-earnings market reaction holds true.
—Zev Fima, CNBC, 2 Mar. 2026
Desire Doue let the ball run through his legs, befuddling his marker to such a degree that the only sensible reaction was laughter.
—Jack Lang, New York Times, 26 Feb. 2026
The left-hander from California struck out nine Michigan State Spartans in Sunday's 4-0 victory at UFCU Disch-Falk Field, befuddling his overmatched victims with an electric breaking ball.
—David Eckert, Austin American Statesman, 23 Feb. 2026
Many applicants have received identical messages lately, befuddling students as well as lab heads who may be used to hearing about rejections but not a string of applications simply returned without review.
—Jonathan Wosen, STAT, 11 Feb. 2026
He was less intimidated by its befuddling organization and had grown accustomed to the antiquated spellings and the nearly illegible, unpunctuated scribblings of harried seventeenth-century officials.
—Literary Hub, 28 Jan. 2026
Atlanta then declined to pick up Kinley’s option for 2026, which was a bit befuddling at the time.
—Tyler Estep, AJC.com, 16 Jan. 2026
The idea of a Russian doing academic research on Iraq was utterly befuddling to Maher and his colleagues.
—Elizabeth Tsurkov, The Atlantic, 11 Jan. 2026
Technically, anyway, the Chiefs-Colts game on Sunday at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium wasn’t a knockout game for the befuddling 5-5 home team in jeopardy of missing the playoffs after three straight Super Bowl berths.
—Kansas City Star, 24 Nov. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for befuddling
Adjective
-
The judging is vexing and perplexing.—
Rebecca Alter,
Vulture,
28 Mar. 2026
-
Radziwill’s absence has been somewhat perplexing.—
Elizabeth Logan,
Glamour,
19 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
The steel pipe's unexpected growth spurt was reported to police early Wednesday by a pedestrian who saw broken pieces of asphalt falling from the cylinder, baffling people passing by and causing traffic congestion.—
CBS News,
CBS News,
12 Mar. 2026
-
Though still fuming from his team’s baffling loss to the Bulls – the Warriors squandered an eight-point lead with 91 seconds remaining – Kerr found his composure long enough to crack a joke.—
Joseph Dycus,
Mercury News,
11 Mar. 2026
Adjective
-
In 2021, one year into D’Amaro’s tenure and following COVID shutdowns, Disney did away with FastPass and introduced a confounding and very costly series of pay-to-skip passes, which require timing advanced booking of limited slots in these formerly free-to-enter shorter lines.—
Rebecca Alter,
Vulture,
5 Feb. 2026
-
The Eagles were a confounding defending champion throughout the regular season.—
Jeff Howe,
New York Times,
5 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
What makes this letter particularly puzzling is the open court case that accuses the NFL of racial discrimination.—
Miami Herald,
Miami Herald,
28 Mar. 2026
-
So the absence of any real investment in the interior offensive line this offseason is puzzling.—
Pat Leonard,
New York Daily News,
17 Mar. 2026
Adjective
-
This lack of strategic continuity is confusing, even for the players.—
Julia Poe,
Chicago Tribune,
28 Mar. 2026
-
The next few seconds were chaotic and confusing.—
Rachel Monroe,
New Yorker,
26 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
There aren’t many ways to earn a club’s first win better than bewildering the league’s defending champions at their place.—
Braidon Nourse,
Denver Post,
26 Mar. 2026
-
McNutt housed some 700 kids — about one-third of the population of French Lick — and Bird found the campus outside the dormitory walls bewildering.—
Keith O'Brien,
Rolling Stone,
22 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
The keenness of my letdown was dismaying.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
13 Feb. 2026
-
But there’s another side to this story, equally dismaying, which is the abandonment of dissidents as a public cause in the West.—
Bret Stephens,
Mercury News,
12 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
That alone would be disconcerting, but that the line (dubbed the Petrova Line, after the scientist who discovered it) seems to be linked to a new, gradual dimming of the sun?—
Kate Erbland,
IndieWire,
10 Mar. 2026
-
The only disconcerting note for reigning champion Bayern was the withdrawal at halftime of Manuel Neuer.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
6 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Befuddling.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/befuddling. Accessed 31 Mar. 2026.
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