1
as in messy
lacking in order, neatness, and often cleanliness
a hugger-mugger presentation of the facts of the case that left everyone confused
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in clandestine
undertaken or done so as to escape being observed or known by others
a tale of hugger-mugger doings and international espionage
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for hugger-mugger
Adjective
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These are released to Pixels almost immediately, while other OEMs must combine with their own fixes and then run these out across the messy Android ecosystem.—
Zak Doffman,
Forbes.com,
12 May 2025 -
The dips are wet, messy behemoths of meat, juice and bread.—
Jenn Harris,
Los Angeles Times,
12 May 2025
Adjective
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The Gestapo, Hitler’s secret police, combed the Poles’ ranks in search of men with experience in clandestine resistance organizations.—
Paul Hockenos,
Smithsonian Magazine,
8 May 2025
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Gaddafi agreed to suspend his country's nuclear weapons program in December 2003, following years of clandestine negotiations that began during the Clinton administration and continued under George W. Bush.—
Faisal Kutty,
MSNBC Newsweek,
8 May 2025
Adjective
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Fearing President Donald Trump’s chaotic trade war would ignite a global recession, investors scrambled to dump US assets.—
Matt Egan,
CNN Money,
15 May 2025
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The stunning image shows the classic spiral swirl of M81 — also known as Bode's Galaxy — suspended against the chaotic cloud patterns of the nebula, with the Cigar Galaxy lurking to its left.—
Anthony Wood,
Space.com,
15 May 2025
Adjective
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Samuel French, a Texas actor on the rise who portrayed the undercover FBI agent CJ Robinson in Martin Scorsese’s Killers of the Flower Moon, has died.—
Mike Barnes,
HollywoodReporter,
12 May 2025
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Pisano has been with the show since his 2021 debut as undercover officer Detective Joe Velasco.—
KiMi Robinson,
USA Today,
8 May 2025
Adjective
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That includes Tom Cruise, as covert CIA division agent Ethan Hunt, riding a motorcycle off a 4,000-foot cliff and BASE jumping the final 500 feet of a ravine, or the breathless climactic train mayhem in 2023’s Dead Reckoning, the opening installment of this two-parter.—
David Rooney,
HollywoodReporter,
14 May 2025
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In an opinion piece published by the Venezuelan independent newspaper La Razón, former lawmaker Omar González Moreno recounted the covert mission that freed him and four others without a single shot being fired.—
Antonio Maria Delgado,
Miami Herald,
12 May 2025
Adjective
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At least 12 outside experts submitted testimony in what’s called the Dunsmore case, finding that San Diego jails are filthy and that workers regularly fail to follow best practices or department policies.—
Jeff McDonald,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
9 May 2025
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Created in 2019 by Eastbound & Down's Danny McBride, the filthy HBO comedy centers around a family of corrupt, fast-talking televangelists led by John Goodman's aging and regretful Eli Gemstone.—
Randall Colburn,
EW.com,
5 May 2025
Adjective
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Earlier this year, researchers announced the discovery of a brick underground aqueduct in Slovakia.—
Sonja Anderson,
Smithsonian Magazine,
12 May 2025
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This would suggest pockets of water in deep underground aquifers.—
Victoria Corless,
Space.com,
12 May 2025
Adjective
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The bill would require private insurers to pay in-network therapists at least 141% of the rate Medicare pays for the same behavioral health or substance use disorder service.—
Chicago Tribune,
Chicago Tribune,
13 May 2025
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The city’s unlawful camping ordinance prohibits camping, occupying camp facilities or using camp paraphernalia on public or private property.—
Mathew Miranda,
Sacbee.com,
13 May 2025
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Cite this Entry
“Hugger-mugger.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/hugger-mugger. Accessed 20 May. 2025.
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