as in messy
lacking in order, neatness, and often cleanliness
a muddled arrangement of trophies in the display case
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
1
as in confused
to throw into a state of mental uncertainty
a car shopper thoroughly muddled by too much well-meaning advice
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in disrupted
to undo the proper order or arrangement of
some mischievous brat had muddled the household accounts
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of muddled
Nicholas Quah, Vulture, 25 Nov. 2025
But his box office track record is a bit mixed and muddled.
—Ryan Coleman, Entertainment Weekly, 24 Nov. 2025
The Breaking Bad timeline became muddled due to mistakes on Walt and Skyler’s divorce papers, as well as a few other details.
—Brian Davids, HollywoodReporter, 17 Nov. 2025
His replacement, Nuno Espirito Santo, is another pragmatist, but West Ham’s performances had been so muddled as to eradicate hope, the nadir being a 2-0 home defeat by Brentford in which the hosts, despite the cost of their squad, already resembled a Championship team.
—Jacob Whitehead, New York Times, 10 Nov. 2025
At the same time, the storyline now comes across as even more muddled and confusing.
—Ross Raihala, Twin Cities, 6 Nov. 2025
But in 2022, Maserati reminded us that there’s another Italian car company, with a rich 108-year history and a respected name, but one that has been tarnished by missteps and muddled strategies in recent years.
—Lawrence Ulrich, Robb Report, 29 Oct. 2025
The six-episode season, which was provided to critics in its entirety, is a disjointed and muddled attempt to turn Rice’s centuries-old secret society into a vehicle for a half-hearted spy thriller.
—Alison Herman, Variety, 26 Oct. 2025
Ryan argues that Cooper’s decision to operate the camera himself (with Matthew Libatique serving as DP) leads to some directorial self-indulgence that makes for a frustrating, muddled experience that could’ve used more editorial discipline.
—Ryan Lattanzio, IndieWire, 17 Oct. 2025
Thomas Drance, New York Times, 12 Jan. 2026
However impressively efficient the American strike may have been, the president’s motives have been muddled.
—Jeffrey Sonnenfeld, Time, 5 Jan. 2026
The situation might be a bit more muddled by the US wanting to resume nuclear testing.
—Ameya Paleja, Interesting Engineering, 23 Dec. 2025
Still, economists say the report could be more than a little muddled this time around.
—Alicia Wallace, CNN Money, 15 Dec. 2025
Suddenly, the whole point of Olympia and Matty’s mission is muddled.
—Noel Murray, Vulture, 12 Dec. 2025
Bernstein’s Mark Moerdler echoed the sentiment that Oracle’s last quarter was overall a decent one, but was muddled by complex controversies.
—Lisa Kailai Han, CNBC, 11 Dec. 2025
As a result of financial and personal problems, Bíró's invention ended up muddled in a number of international patents and licensing agreements in different companies and individuals in various countries.
—New Atlas, 29 Oct. 2025
Together the flavor is muddled, slightly discordant, but alone the Irish whiskey gets to sing, its apples and pears and slight malt and gentle touch a perfect foil to the zesty front palate of the lemon and the deep finish of the almonds.
—Jeremy Repanich, Robb Report, 25 Oct. 2025
Adjective
But the thinking behind the category itself remains muddled, and the rollout hasn’t helped.
—Nicholas Quah, Vulture, 25 Nov. 2025
But his box office track record is a bit mixed and muddled.
—Ryan Coleman, Entertainment Weekly, 24 Nov. 2025
The Breaking Bad timeline became muddled due to mistakes on Walt and Skyler’s divorce papers, as well as a few other details.
—Brian Davids, HollywoodReporter, 17 Nov. 2025
His replacement, Nuno Espirito Santo, is another pragmatist, but West Ham’s performances had been so muddled as to eradicate hope, the nadir being a 2-0 home defeat by Brentford in which the hosts, despite the cost of their squad, already resembled a Championship team.
—Jacob Whitehead, New York Times, 10 Nov. 2025
At the same time, the storyline now comes across as even more muddled and confusing.
—Ross Raihala, Twin Cities, 6 Nov. 2025
But in 2022, Maserati reminded us that there’s another Italian car company, with a rich 108-year history and a respected name, but one that has been tarnished by missteps and muddled strategies in recent years.
—Lawrence Ulrich, Robb Report, 29 Oct. 2025
The six-episode season, which was provided to critics in its entirety, is a disjointed and muddled attempt to turn Rice’s centuries-old secret society into a vehicle for a half-hearted spy thriller.
—Alison Herman, Variety, 26 Oct. 2025
Ryan argues that Cooper’s decision to operate the camera himself (with Matthew Libatique serving as DP) leads to some directorial self-indulgence that makes for a frustrating, muddled experience that could’ve used more editorial discipline.
—Ryan Lattanzio, IndieWire, 17 Oct. 2025
Verb
At the moment, however, the apex of the 2026 draft order is muddled.
—Thomas Drance, New York Times, 12 Jan. 2026
However impressively efficient the American strike may have been, the president’s motives have been muddled.
—Jeffrey Sonnenfeld, Time, 5 Jan. 2026
The situation might be a bit more muddled by the US wanting to resume nuclear testing.
—Ameya Paleja, Interesting Engineering, 23 Dec. 2025
Still, economists say the report could be more than a little muddled this time around.
—Alicia Wallace, CNN Money, 15 Dec. 2025
Suddenly, the whole point of Olympia and Matty’s mission is muddled.
—Noel Murray, Vulture, 12 Dec. 2025
Bernstein’s Mark Moerdler echoed the sentiment that Oracle’s last quarter was overall a decent one, but was muddled by complex controversies.
—Lisa Kailai Han, CNBC, 11 Dec. 2025
As a result of financial and personal problems, Bíró's invention ended up muddled in a number of international patents and licensing agreements in different companies and individuals in various countries.
—New Atlas, 29 Oct. 2025
Together the flavor is muddled, slightly discordant, but alone the Irish whiskey gets to sing, its apples and pears and slight malt and gentle touch a perfect foil to the zesty front palate of the lemon and the deep finish of the almonds.
—Jeremy Repanich, Robb Report, 25 Oct. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for muddled
Adjective
-
But for the 2026 reboot, the two couples are poly and everything is way messier than the original.—
James Folta,
Literary Hub,
15 Jan. 2026
-
Even the world’s top leaders have shared that between messy return-to-office politics, scrambling to keep up with AI, and an unforgiving schedule, work gets too daunting for them, too, sometimes.—
Orianna Rosa Royle,
Fortune,
15 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
Sassounian, for his part, doesn’t think there’s any risk the two California Couriers would ever be confused with each other.—
Colin Lecher,
Los Angeles Times,
11 Jan. 2026
-
Many of the event’s attendees were confused about — or ignorant of — what had occurred on the other side of the court house.—
Laura Tillman,
Hartford Courant,
9 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
The Lakers disrupted alley-oop attempts to Castle and Luke Kornet in the opening minutes.—
CBS News,
CBS News,
8 Jan. 2026
-
During a three-game losing streak that began with a loss to Arkansas State, Arkansas has been turnover prone and seen its dribble-drive offense disrupted.—
Ethan Westerman,
Arkansas Online,
8 Jan. 2026
Adjective
-
By contrast, fringe subcultures operate in a more cryptic and chaotic manner.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
12 Jan. 2026
-
Much of the movie's story revolves around Marty's chaotic efforts to make enough money to travel to Japan and compete in a tournament there.—
Tommy McArdle,
PEOPLE,
12 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
One thing that baffled me a little were the flashbacks.—
Patrick Brzeski,
HollywoodReporter,
13 Jan. 2026
-
The team behind the shock discovery (in more ways than one) is baffled by this beautiful arc of material, which defies expectations and current theories surrounding such stellar remains.—
Robert Lea,
Space.com,
12 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
Empty boxes were stacked along a side wall in the locker room as players shuffled in and out to pack up a season’s worth of shirts and jerseys and cleats and memorabilia.—
Nicki Jhabvala,
New York Times,
6 Jan. 2026
-
First, the sophomore shuffled back into coverage after showing A-gap pressure to intercept a Bryce Underwood pass over the middle of the field, ending a key fourth-quarter drive.—
David Eckert,
Austin American Statesman,
1 Jan. 2026
Adjective
-
Perhaps whoever comes in — either as the full interim rather than the pre-interim, or the actual full-time appointment, whenever that is — will figure out a way to make this expensive but jumbled squad work.—
Nick Miller,
New York Times,
12 Jan. 2026
-
Tidy Food Storage Containers The same can be said for the food storage containers that can easily become a jumbled mess in the cabinet.—
Mary Cornetta,
Better Homes & Gardens,
30 Dec. 2025
Verb
-
Although puzzled, Aisha answered honestly.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
7 Jan. 2026
-
Like his wife, Moore was puzzled when their friend didn’t show up to eat dinner.—
Julian Roberts-Grmela,
New York Daily News,
5 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Muddled.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/muddled. Accessed 16 Jan. 2026.
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