as in mess
a state in which everything is out of order
a professional chef would not tolerate such messiness in the kitchen
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Recent Examples of messiness
This is a movie designed to repulse as much attract, and one in which its sheer messiness, its chaos-Muppet energy and its mania gets you uncomfortably close to its unraveling main character’s mindset.
—
David Fear, Rolling Stone, 6 Nov. 2025
But risk has become uninsurable, and messiness doesn’t test well.
—Literary Hub, 27 Oct. 2025
And yet, within that messiness, there is occasional emotional truth here.
—Kate Erbland, IndieWire, 22 Oct. 2025
What was once rebellion now reads as retro — authenticity repackaged for an audience yearning for the very messiness that once made those earlier actors feel so real.
—Benjamin Svetkey, HollywoodReporter, 22 Oct. 2025
He is drawn to designers, such as the interior stylist Colin King, who seek to instill a space with a kind of wabi-sabi messiness—the equivalent of a rumpled haircut from the Sally Hershberger salon.
—Alexandra Schwartz, New Yorker, 20 Oct. 2025
Indeed, all the actors seem genuinely committed to their parts, which gives everything a convincing gravity that feels true, and which runs counter to the jokey messiness of so many modern horror sequels.
—Bilge Ebiri, Vulture, 17 Oct. 2025
Live Translation, in aiming to fix all that messiness in an algorithm streamed through Bluetooth earbuds, is not opening human communication up so much as flattening it.
—Matteo Wong, The Atlantic, 16 Oct. 2025
The messiness is prompting some Democrats to call for the party to be more aggressive in influencing primaries, Politico reports.
—Eleanor Mueller, semafor.com, 14 Oct. 2025
David Fear, Rolling Stone, 6 Nov. 2025
But risk has become uninsurable, and messiness doesn’t test well.
—Literary Hub, 27 Oct. 2025
And yet, within that messiness, there is occasional emotional truth here.
—Kate Erbland, IndieWire, 22 Oct. 2025
What was once rebellion now reads as retro — authenticity repackaged for an audience yearning for the very messiness that once made those earlier actors feel so real.
—Benjamin Svetkey, HollywoodReporter, 22 Oct. 2025
He is drawn to designers, such as the interior stylist Colin King, who seek to instill a space with a kind of wabi-sabi messiness—the equivalent of a rumpled haircut from the Sally Hershberger salon.
—Alexandra Schwartz, New Yorker, 20 Oct. 2025
Indeed, all the actors seem genuinely committed to their parts, which gives everything a convincing gravity that feels true, and which runs counter to the jokey messiness of so many modern horror sequels.
—Bilge Ebiri, Vulture, 17 Oct. 2025
Live Translation, in aiming to fix all that messiness in an algorithm streamed through Bluetooth earbuds, is not opening human communication up so much as flattening it.
—Matteo Wong, The Atlantic, 16 Oct. 2025
The messiness is prompting some Democrats to call for the party to be more aggressive in influencing primaries, Politico reports.
—Eleanor Mueller, semafor.com, 14 Oct. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for messiness
Noun
-
Second shift is a real mess after a blackout strikes the area, forcing Robert (by way of the player) to hack into the city’s electric grid and turn the lights back on one section at a time.—
Christopher Cruz,
Rolling Stone,
7 Nov. 2025
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For larger messes, the stain-resistant rug is also machine-washable for quick and hassle-free maintenance.—
Rachel Trujillo,
PEOPLE,
7 Nov. 2025
Noun
-
The Lincolnshire club had been locked in a spiral of decline in recent times — going from the second-tier Championship to National League North in the space of 12 years, amid financial chaos — but are now upwardly mobile once more, having won promotion back to the National League last season.—
Philip Buckingham,
New York Times,
8 Nov. 2025
-
Satoru Gojo, the strongest jujutsu sorcerer, arrived to address the chaos, but curse users and spirits plotted to seal him away.—
Nick Romano,
Entertainment Weekly,
7 Nov. 2025
Noun
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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
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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
-
At the center of all the glitzy havoc—her face often looming on a huge flat screen that rolls around the stage, following actors like a hulking LED stalker—is of course Chenoweth.—
Sara Holdren,
Vulture,
10 Nov. 2025
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After those rules are broken, the gremlin spawns more of its kind and end up wrecking havoc on Billy’s hometown during Christmas.—
Rebecca Rubin,
Variety,
6 Nov. 2025
Noun
-
Toys are supposed to be fun and exciting for children, while some are also educational, but a few products aimed at kids have caused a wave of confusion among adults.—
Alice Gibbs,
MSNBC Newsweek,
8 Nov. 2025
-
Clarity awaits amid confusion, Libra.—
Valerie Mesa,
PEOPLE,
8 Nov. 2025
Noun
-
The Shea Moisture Define & Shine Edge Gel slicks my edges back without snatching them to hell.—
Kayla Greaves,
Essence,
6 Nov. 2025
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That's hell for a kid to see that.—
Ryan Morik,
FOXNews.com,
5 Nov. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Messiness.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/messiness. Accessed 12 Nov. 2025.
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