1
as in to play
to spend time in aimless activity
spent the vacation day just messing around
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in to flirt
to show a sexual attraction for someone just for fun
a guy who goes to the health club mainly to mess around with the women
Synonyms & Similar Words
3
as in to travel
to come or be together as friends
if you continue to mess around with such narrow-minded boobs, you'll begin to think and act like them
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of mess around
As far as home finds, pick up this fall-scented candle and a lightweight handheld vacuum to tackle quick messes around the house.
—
Isabel Garcia, PEOPLE, 8 Oct. 2025
Johnson mentioned that black widow bites are relatively rare, but nothing to mess around with.
—Tiffany Acosta, AZCentral.com, 6 Oct. 2025
Columbia Men’s Silver Ridge Cargo Pants Engineered with Columbia’s water-resistant, moisture-wicking, sun-protective fabric weave, these hiking pants don’t mess around.
—Alice Bennett, Travel + Leisure, 5 Oct. 2025
Around March, during a session with Allen and Slatkin, Maddell started messing around with chords to pair with an acoustic that Slatkin had at the ready.
—Josh Glicksman, Billboard, 12 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for mess around
Isabel Garcia, PEOPLE, 8 Oct. 2025
Johnson mentioned that black widow bites are relatively rare, but nothing to mess around with.
—Tiffany Acosta, AZCentral.com, 6 Oct. 2025
Columbia Men’s Silver Ridge Cargo Pants Engineered with Columbia’s water-resistant, moisture-wicking, sun-protective fabric weave, these hiking pants don’t mess around.
—Alice Bennett, Travel + Leisure, 5 Oct. 2025
Around March, during a session with Allen and Slatkin, Maddell started messing around with chords to pair with an acoustic that Slatkin had at the ready.
—Josh Glicksman, Billboard, 12 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for mess around
Recent Examples of Synonyms for mess around
Verb
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Besides Adebayo, Miami’s only other available center was two-way contract player Vlad Goldin, who arrived from a G-League assignment but did not play.—
Barry Jackson,
Miami Herald,
8 Nov. 2025
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The three titles that were won with fewer than 90 points were wrapped up with at least three games still to play, which led to an easing off in the final weeks.—
Oliver Kay,
New York Times,
8 Nov. 2025
Verb
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Other Inside Trader Joe’s podcast episodes have discussed many of the quirks of the beloved grocery store, like what the bells next to cash registered are for and whether employees are encouraged to flirt with customers.—
Sabrina Weiss,
PEOPLE,
31 Oct. 2025
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Nevertheless, Patrick De Haan, head of petroleum analysis at GasBuddy, touted the decrease in fuel costs, with the national average flirting with the $3-per-gallon price point.—
Washington Examiner Staff,
The Washington Examiner,
31 Oct. 2025
Verb
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The Hawaii Rainbow Warriors travel to Matthew Knight Arena to face the Oregon Ducks in their 2025-26 season-opening college basketball matchup.—
Ben Verbrugge,
MSNBC Newsweek,
5 Nov. 2025
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The plane had hundreds of thousands of pounds of fuel on board to travel all the way to Honolulu, Louisville Fire Chief Brian O’Neill said in the press conference.—
Michele Luhn,
CNBC,
4 Nov. 2025
Verb
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Gisin hopes that by fooling around with measurements of these more exotic states, physicists will come to better understand the role of measurement in general.—
Quanta Magazine,
Quanta Magazine,
8 Aug. 2025
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Those have come from two players: Adrian Morejon of the San Diego Padres, who throws an odd knuckleball-changeup hybrid about 1 percent of the time, and Jonah Bride of the Minnesota Twins, an infielder fooling around with the knuckler in blowouts.—
Cody Stavenhagen,
New York Times,
19 June 2025
Verb
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At the time Farzam was no longer a cadet or associated with the local police department.—
Ray Sanchez,
CNN Money,
2 Nov. 2025
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Its natural deodorizing properties help neutralize the unpleasant smells associated with pets, according to Stein.—
Daley Quinn,
Southern Living,
1 Nov. 2025
Verb
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Under the public trees, children ran exultantly between cars.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
7 Nov. 2025
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The thumping Republicans took in this week's elections reflected longer-running anger among constituencies that already leaned Democratic, but the GOP needs to worry that the government shutdown will cause that frustration to spread.—
Deputy News Editor,
MSNBC Newsweek,
6 Nov. 2025
Verb
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The hot air just hangs about, causing the dish to cook unevenly with some spots nearly raw and others burnt.—
New Atlas,
New Atlas,
4 Nov. 2025
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In 2019, city employees began hanging about 500 trick-or-treat pumpkin buckets in the trees on Main Street every October.—
Elliott Harrell,
Travel + Leisure,
18 Oct. 2025
Verb
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It was acquired as a limited series by Amazon; production was delayed by the pandemic, which gave the actors who made up the band—fronted by Riley Keough, granddaughter of Elvis Presley, as Daisy—time to bond and feel more like a real group by the time the show aired in 2023.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
6 Nov. 2025
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It’s designed to teach life skills through music, from trying new veggies to winding down for bed, with songs and content that have become a go-to resource for millions of parents looking to learn and bond with their children.—
Matt Grobar,
Deadline,
5 Nov. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Mess around.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/mess%20around. Accessed 8 Nov. 2025.
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