mess around

1
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

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 mess around 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 Randall Art likes to mess around sometimes. Keith Pandolfi, The Enquirer, 12 Aug. 2025 So for example Joule, our digital assistant, cannot mess around with compliance checks on travel and on sourcing, or on directing the flow of materials. Tharin Pillay, Time, 4 Aug. 2025 See All Example Sentences for mess around
Recent Examples of Synonyms for mess around
Verb
  • Trump played a role of his own in applying pressure.
    Eric Cortellessa, Time, 11 Oct. 2025
  • Pratt plays Detective Chris Raven, a man who programmed an artificial intelligence called Mercy, which Los Angeles courts are using to determine guilt.
    Jason P. Frank, Vulture, 11 Oct. 2025
Verb
  • Chelsea repeatedly flirted with the Battersea Power Station site, Brentford tried to move to Kingston upon Thames and Wimbledon effectively did go to Milton Keynes.
    Michael Cox, New York Times, 11 Oct. 2025
  • On screen, the character of Grofield flirts with danger the way an artist flirts with an audience.
    Okla Jones, Essence, 9 Oct. 2025
Verb
  • The 4-star Starlink Mini combines around-the-globe connectivity with a compact, efficient design that can travel almost anywhere with you.
    Wendy Sheehan Donnell, PC Magazine, 8 Oct. 2025
  • Isabella Lozano had been traveling in the eastbound lanes of the freeway when the crash happened in front of her vehicle.
    Ishani Desai, Sacbee.com, 7 Oct. 2025
Verb
  • 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
  • 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
  • Miller is navigating through the kinks, continuing to get acclimated with the taping of his wrist — something he’s been instructed to do — and working through the rust associated with not playing in an actual competitive game for nine months.
    Roderick Boone, Charlotte Observer, 12 Oct. 2025
  • That’s because, Vandover said, one of the biggest challenges associated with the programs is getting the word out.
    Chris Quintana, USA Today, 12 Oct. 2025
Verb
  • Frequency combs could change that by allowing many data channels to run simultaneously through a single optical fiber.
    Aamir Khollam, Interesting Engineering, 10 Oct. 2025
  • Ticketholders will be transported to the homes via shuttle buses that run continuously on the tour route.
    Linda Mcintosh, San Diego Union-Tribune, 10 Oct. 2025
Verb
  • The student was found hanging about 50 feet up in a tree with the open chute, Metro Nashville Police Department said on X Saturday.
    Alexandra Skores, CNN Money, 6 Oct. 2025
  • Sizes Tablecloths should hang about 8-16 inches on each side for formal dining and about 3-6 inches on each side for casual dining.
    BestReviews, Mercury News, 10 June 2025
Verb
  • Off screen, the Emmy winner for The Bear bonded with the mom of three.
    Liz McNeil, PEOPLE, 8 Oct. 2025
  • At first, Audrey bonded only with Misha and was aggressive toward Kristin.
    Melissa Fleur Afshar, MSNBC Newsweek, 8 Oct. 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Mess around.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/mess%20around. Accessed 15 Oct. 2025.

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