as in mess
a state in which everything is out of order
a professional chef would not tolerate such messiness in the kitchen
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
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 messiness
And after Kamala Harris got their presidential nomination without a primary, plenty of Democrats welcome that messiness.
—
Burgess Everett, semafor.com, 23 Sep. 2025
Better Broken sees her grappling with the messiness of humanity, the life-affirming act of overcoming challenges and coming back to herself.
—Ilana Kaplan, PEOPLE, 19 Sep. 2025
The choice is not between going forward or going back, but between working with the complexity of human and natural realities, in all their organic messiness, or pretending those realities do not exist.
—Paul Kingsnorth, Harpers Magazine, 19 Sep. 2025
Hirschhorn’s Josh manages to be endearing even when the character’s messiness and selfishness overwhelm him.
—Chad Jones, Mercury News, 12 Sep. 2025
As well as being a bold reimagining, The Roses puts a refreshing twist on the pressures of success and the trappings of modern life, the risks of making our careers our identity, and the messiness of modern relationships and family.
—Simon Thompson, Forbes.com, 28 Aug. 2025
The coming-of-age drama does a great job at capturing the messiness of young love, but off-screen, several of the cast members are in happy, long-term relationships.
—Kelsey Lentz, People.com, 28 Aug. 2025
So, the Jays can put Monday’s messiness behind them.
—Mitch Bannon, New York Times, 19 Aug. 2025
So what would a 16 task be in terms of messiness?
—IEEE Spectrum, 2 July 2025
Burgess Everett, semafor.com, 23 Sep. 2025
Better Broken sees her grappling with the messiness of humanity, the life-affirming act of overcoming challenges and coming back to herself.
—Ilana Kaplan, PEOPLE, 19 Sep. 2025
The choice is not between going forward or going back, but between working with the complexity of human and natural realities, in all their organic messiness, or pretending those realities do not exist.
—Paul Kingsnorth, Harpers Magazine, 19 Sep. 2025
Hirschhorn’s Josh manages to be endearing even when the character’s messiness and selfishness overwhelm him.
—Chad Jones, Mercury News, 12 Sep. 2025
As well as being a bold reimagining, The Roses puts a refreshing twist on the pressures of success and the trappings of modern life, the risks of making our careers our identity, and the messiness of modern relationships and family.
—Simon Thompson, Forbes.com, 28 Aug. 2025
The coming-of-age drama does a great job at capturing the messiness of young love, but off-screen, several of the cast members are in happy, long-term relationships.
—Kelsey Lentz, People.com, 28 Aug. 2025
So, the Jays can put Monday’s messiness behind them.
—Mitch Bannon, New York Times, 19 Aug. 2025
So what would a 16 task be in terms of messiness?
—IEEE Spectrum, 2 July 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for messiness
Noun
-
Bissell Featherweight Cordless Stick Vacuum The vacuum also converts into a handheld device, which is a total game changer for cleaning above-floor messes, couch cushions, baseboards, and spots where my apartment loves to collect dust bunnies.—
Toni Sutton,
PEOPLE,
27 Sep. 2025
-
Compression Packing Cubes Tripped Large Packing Cube Set Compression packing cubes save so much space and keep your suitcase from becoming a mess by day two.—
Julie Rousseau,
Travel + Leisure,
27 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
Roll with the chaos as the moon and Uranus clash.—
USA TODAY,
USA Today,
4 Oct. 2025
-
In other words, Steve is a lot to play, and the Oscar-winner throws himself into every forlorn expression, every kindly mentoring session, every manic bit of rushing to and fro as chaos reigns around him, every stumbling step toward self-medicating into oblivion.—
David Fear,
Rolling Stone,
3 Oct. 2025
Noun
-
Ray’s most chaotic photograms—jumbles that push out of the frame or look like time bombs ready to explode—find echoes in his films, projected on the back walls, a show in themselves.—
Vince Aletti,
New Yorker,
3 Oct. 2025
-
In jumbles of old stones that, to me, are barely legible as the remains of buildings, Cocon López could see the entire timeline of old Aké and how later people interacted with and repurposed what came before.—
Lizzie Wade,
Smithsonian Magazine,
23 May 2025
Noun
-
And although police have uncovered networks seeking to cause havoc after the election, the fear is that authorities will not be able to expose them all.—
Christian Edwards,
CNN Money,
26 Sep. 2025
-
Officials also warned of the havoc the network could have caused if left intact.—
Shane Croucher,
MSNBC Newsweek,
23 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
But this caused even more confusion.—
Mitch Moxley,
Rolling Stone,
27 Sep. 2025
-
But, investigators found there was too much confusion over the interpretation of the rule.—
David Goodhue,
Miami Herald,
27 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
Yes, these Eagles have been to hell.—
Brooks Kubena,
New York Times,
29 Sep. 2025
-
The press helped to turn public opinion against the war, not because the press was antiwar or even had a politics but because war is hell, and hell is photogenic.—
Louis Menand,
New Yorker,
27 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Messiness.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/messiness. Accessed 5 Oct. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share