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flummox

verb

ˈflə-məks How to pronounce flummox (audio)
Definition of flummoxnext
as in to perplex
to throw into a state of mental uncertainty an actor who's easily flummoxed by any changes in the script

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of flummox The Celtics were flummoxed by Robinson during the 2025 Eastern Conference Semifinals. — Tom Rende, Forbes.com, 1 July 2026 Christian Petersen / Getty Images San Antonio’s defense once again flummoxed the Thunder. — Andrew Greif, NBC news, 29 May 2026 Visitors were flummoxed by the machinery used to pay, and local residents struggled to get the free permits they were promised. — Michael Smolens, San Diego Union-Tribune, 24 May 2026 His injuries facilitate his regeneration into the younger McGann model, via a lengthy hospital sequence in which the medical staff is appropriately flummoxed by his two hearts. — Richard Edwards, Space.com, 14 May 2026 See All Example Sentences for flummox
Recent Examples of Synonyms for flummox
  1. perplex
  2. bewilder
  3. baffle
  4. confuse
  5. puzzle
  6. befuddle
Verb
  • While Peta protests at fashion week are nothing new, many were perplexed by the idea that wool should be removed from the supply chain.
    — Sophie Lou Wilson, Vogue, 18 Sep. 2026
  • Nearly everyone outside Michigan was perplexed, or downright angry, about the outcome.
    — Ian Miller OutKick, FOXNews.com, 8 Sep. 2026
Definition of perplex
Verb
  • Dan emerges as Primetime’s unlikely heart, bewildered by the dark world he’s wandered into and left to negotiate his ambitions with the high stakes of the job.
    — David Canfield, HollywoodReporter, 3 Sep. 2026
  • That’s a common sentiment from a touring superstar, but there’s a sense that Kahan really might be as happily bewildered as the rest of us about how songs this personal and cloudy came to captivate even sunny California.
    — Chris Willman, Variety, 17 Aug. 2026
Definition of bewilder
Verb
  • On September 8, 2026, OpenAI announced that an artificial intelligence model may have solved one of the most significant problems in the field, the infamous Navier-Stokes problem, which had baffled countless mathematicians for decades.
    — Manon Bischoff, Scientific American, 15 Sep. 2026
  • Known as chronic kidney disease of unknown etiology (CKDu) — or Mesoamerican nephropathy — the condition continues to baffle researchers, as some otherwise healthy adults develop kidney failure without having any of the traditional risk factors.
    — Shiv Sudhakar, FOXNews.com, 15 Sep. 2026
Definition of baffle
Verb
  • But the decision left many in the football community confused, with an online petition started by alumnus Tim Hanrahan garnering more than 3,000 signatures.
    — Lila Hempel-Edgers, Chicago Tribune, 19 Sep. 2026
  • This is where things get messy, and many folks — oligarchs in particular — become invested in keeping the general voter confused.
    — Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 18 Sep. 2026
Definition of confuse
Verb
  • In patients with post-herpetic neuralgia, while the shingles rash has cleared with seemingly normal-looking skin, skin biopsies show a puzzling reduction in sensory nerve fibers in the painful areas.
    — Andrew Bubak, The Conversation, 14 Sep. 2026
  • While the near synchronicity of the worldwide foram flips might seem puzzling, Darling and Ujiié pointed out that what appears instantaneous in the fossil record might unfold over 1,000 years or more in real time.
    — Quanta Magazine, Quanta Magazine, 11 Sep. 2026
Definition of puzzle
Verb
  • Those are decreasing in frequency, and the situation has befuddled the USTA.
    — Matthew Futterman, New York Times, 9 Sep. 2026
  • Abbas Kiarostami did that in Taste of Cherry, which befuddled certain audiences but then also won the Palme d’Or in 1997.
    — Nicholas Quah, Vulture, 10 Aug. 2026
Definition of befuddle

Browse Nearby Words

flumes
flummox
flummoxed
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Cite this Entry

“Flummox.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/flummox. Accessed 22 Sep. 2026.

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