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
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in perplexing
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Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for befuddling
Adjective
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How the company hasn't bought AI start-up Anthropic is downright perplexing, to use the word of the day.—
Jim Cramer,
CNBC,
4 Aug. 2025 -
To Boltzmann’s contemporaries, this was perplexing.—
Leila Sloman,
Wired News,
3 Aug. 2025
Verb
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Researchers are particularly focused on unraveling the puzzling interplay between gas content, magma pressure and lava flow dynamics.—
Dan Perry,
Newsweek,
3 Jan. 2025
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Almost two years into his ordeal, Gould learned of an initiative at the National Institutes of Health that focuses on solving the country’s most puzzling medical cases.—
Jason Liebowitz,
The Atlantic,
2 Jan. 2025
Adjective
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But the drum sound wasn’t nearly as dismaying as the studio’s piano, which kept slipping out of tune.—
Peter Ames Carlin,
Rolling Stone,
13 Aug. 2025
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Data site Census Reporter whispers a hopeful, yet slightly dismaying, truth: over half of Austinites are unattached.—
Ana Gutierrez,
Austin American Statesman,
2 July 2025
Adjective
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Hilarious Theories Go Viral The bewildering encounter quickly went viral, prompting fellow Redditors to offer their own humorous theories for the stranger's behavior.—
Maria Morava,
MSNBC Newsweek,
15 Aug. 2025
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According to the researchers, these bewildering clouds are likely the remnants of much larger structures that puffed out of the galaxy's center several million years ago.—
Brandon Specktor,
Space.com,
10 Aug. 2025
Adjective
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Furthermore, a source close to Harry made clear how upsetting the findings were for him.—
Lizzie Lanuza,
StyleCaster,
8 Aug. 2025
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Practice saying no to things that aren’t in your best interest, and avoid engaging in triggering, negative, or upsetting conversations.—
Maia Niguel Hoskin,
Forbes.com,
31 July 2025
Adjective
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Some events, perhaps especially those that are morally incomprehensible, need to be wrestled with on a human level.—
Will Harris,
EW.com,
3 Aug. 2025
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Her scream resonated with the one in my chest while also being incomprehensible and beyond me.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
28 July 2025
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Cite this Entry
“Befuddling.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/befuddling. Accessed 20 Aug. 2025.
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