MESSES AROUND Synonyms: 116 Similar and Opposite Words

messes around

verb

present tense third-person singular of mess around

as in plays

to spend time in aimless activity spent the vacation day just messing around

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in flirts

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

as in travels

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

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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 messes around Other standouts include a Maybelline mascara and a Black and Decker handheld vacuum, which makes quick work of small messes around the house and in the car. — Isabel Garcia, PEOPLE, 30 Jan. 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for messes around

Verb

Beyond serving as an incentive and accountability mechanism in the human academic research ecosystem, there are commercial incentives for discovery, and credit plays a different role in that setting.

— Jeffrey S. Flier, STAT, 5 Oct. 2026
Park Hae-il plays the head of a newspaper’s social affairs desk, and Lee Min-ho a rookie reporter.

— Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 5 Oct. 2026

Definition of plays

Verb

Hal flirts with Kerry; John has an affair with Zoe (Poorna Jagannathan), the wife of William Macon (Garret Dillahunt), a local cattle mogul whose compound has more high tech weaponry than a mere human would seem to need.

— Alison Herman, Variety, 14 Aug. 2026
Rachel dates a shoe store operator named Lou (Bob Hoskins), while Charlotte nurses a crush on her handsome young school bus driver and flirts with Catholicism to the chagrin of her Jewish mother.

— David Faris, TheWeek, 17 July 2026

Definition of flirts

Verb

This isn't too much to ask for given its position given its Little Cottonwood Canyon position, which can enhance snowfall when Pacific moisture travels inland and reaches the Wasatch Mountains.

— Jessica Chapel, Condé Nast Traveler, 7 Oct. 2026
Like Mary Ventura, Esther travels down a tunnel before greeting her mother at its end.

— Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 7 Oct. 2026

Definition of travels

Verb

Though the sisters are supposedly first-generation Italian American, no whiff of the old country hangs about Kay; Dorothy will at least spit out a few words in Italian.

— Television Critic, Los Angeles Times, 10 Mar. 2026
Turquoise pearl, and azure line the space, and a cylindrical hanging light sculpture made of hundreds of white and gold ceramic fish hangs about the lounge seating area.

— Kristin Braswell, Condé Nast Traveler, 7 Jan. 2026

Definition of hangs about

Verb

The Shiji associates Sun Tzu with Wu’s campaigns against its powerful rival Chu, including the campaign that culminated in the capture of the Chu capital, Ying, in 506 bce.

— Ethan Teekah, Encyclopedia Britannica, 11 Sep. 2026
What being Southern meant to his father—and the values Duane associates with being a Southern gentleman.

— Sid Evans, Southern Living, 11 Aug. 2026

Definition of associates

Verb

Cade Depriest hooks up with a Gunn again for 34 yards and Winter Park is on the move back inside the red zone.

— Buddy Collings, The Orlando Sentinel, 11 Sep. 2026
Tony contains details directly pulled from Kitchen Confidential, including a memorable moment in which one of the cooks (Leo Woodall) hooks up with a bride who visits the restaurant immediately following her own wedding.

— Tommy McArdle, PEOPLE, 7 Aug. 2026

Definition of hooks up

Verb

While most of the system’s weight rests on its clear base, it is held upright by an adjustable stand that connects near the top of the system’s back panel and extends outward to form an A-frame ladder.

— Michael Justin Allen Sexton, PC Magazine, 4 Oct. 2026
For Obrochta, the best part of performing, regardless of the audience, is what happens when something in one of his presentations connects with someone’s own life.

— Jim Dudlicek, Chicago Tribune, 4 Oct. 2026

Definition of connects

Verb

Frozen soil that has held buildings, roads and pipelines for decades can start to sink as temperatures rise and the ice that bonds soil particles weakens.

— Ming Xiao, The Conversation, 29 Sep. 2026
Realize that the cement is the glue that bonds the sand and stones in your mix together.

— Tim Carter, Hartford Courant, 26 Sep. 2026

Definition of bonds

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messes

messes around

messes over

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“Messes around.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/messes%20around. Accessed 8 Oct. 2026.

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Synonyms of messes around

verb

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