as in messy
lacking in order, neatness, and often cleanliness
a tousled pile of yarn and material scraps at the bottom of her craft box
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in disrupted
to undo the proper order or arrangement of
his grandfather would always tousle the boy's neatly combed hair
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of tousled
Emma Banks, InStyle, 12 Jan. 2026
Her hair was styled in loose, tousled waves.
—Catherine Santino, PEOPLE, 12 Jan. 2026
To get the best of both worlds, Cyrus wore her blonde hair down in loose, tousled waves, à la her old look from the Disney Channel series, which first premiered in March 2006 and ran until January 2011.
—Emily Tannenbaum, Glamour, 4 Jan. 2026
With an 18-inch waist and long, tousled hair, Bardot was one of the first movie stars to appear au naturel.
—Jordan Mintzer, HollywoodReporter, 28 Dec. 2025
In September, 2022, Rafael Mariano Grossi, an elegant Argentinean diplomat with tousled salt-and-pepper hair, led a convoy of nuclear experts toward the sprawling Zaporizhzhia power plant, in southeast Ukraine, which had been seized by Russia in the early days of its invasion.
—Robin Wright, New Yorker, 12 Dec. 2025
Carpenter wore her blonde hair in loose, tousled curls, with her signature blush and strong eyebrows, and a deep, rosy pink lip.
—Anna Cafolla, Vogue, 7 Dec. 2025
Since then, she’s been spotted in tousled recession blonde at the 2025 AMAs, a proper banged bob at Cannes, and in one of her latest looks, snake eyes and a superfine pixie cut at the Met Gala.
—Essence, 24 Oct. 2025
In his ’70s heyday, few actors possessed Redford’s star wattage, aided considerably by his tousled blond locks, granite jaw and million-dollar smile.
—Steve Chagollan, Variety, 16 Sep. 2025
Skyler Caruso, PEOPLE, 31 Dec. 2025
The supermodel wore her signature blonde hair long and tousled, with a dense set of bangs.
—Anna Cafolla, Vogue, 15 Nov. 2025
In that original viral campaign launch video, a bearded Platner, his strawberry blonde hair tousled, introduced Maine voters to the issues central to his platform, namely, broad economic populism, taxing billionaires, and universal healthcare.
—Sam Stone, Bon Appetit Magazine, 16 Oct. 2025
Look at Jimmy Fallon, who steered clear of the wrong jokes and tousled the right hair, and is still catching all-caps strays on Truth Social.
—James Folta
september 19, Literary Hub, 19 Sep. 2025
Adjective
The Frankenstein actor paired his perfectly tousled tresses with a Bottega Veneta double-breasted suit and tinted sunnies.
—Emma Banks, InStyle, 12 Jan. 2026
Her hair was styled in loose, tousled waves.
—Catherine Santino, PEOPLE, 12 Jan. 2026
To get the best of both worlds, Cyrus wore her blonde hair down in loose, tousled waves, à la her old look from the Disney Channel series, which first premiered in March 2006 and ran until January 2011.
—Emily Tannenbaum, Glamour, 4 Jan. 2026
With an 18-inch waist and long, tousled hair, Bardot was one of the first movie stars to appear au naturel.
—Jordan Mintzer, HollywoodReporter, 28 Dec. 2025
In September, 2022, Rafael Mariano Grossi, an elegant Argentinean diplomat with tousled salt-and-pepper hair, led a convoy of nuclear experts toward the sprawling Zaporizhzhia power plant, in southeast Ukraine, which had been seized by Russia in the early days of its invasion.
—Robin Wright, New Yorker, 12 Dec. 2025
Carpenter wore her blonde hair in loose, tousled curls, with her signature blush and strong eyebrows, and a deep, rosy pink lip.
—Anna Cafolla, Vogue, 7 Dec. 2025
Since then, she’s been spotted in tousled recession blonde at the 2025 AMAs, a proper banged bob at Cannes, and in one of her latest looks, snake eyes and a superfine pixie cut at the Met Gala.
—Essence, 24 Oct. 2025
In his ’70s heyday, few actors possessed Redford’s star wattage, aided considerably by his tousled blond locks, granite jaw and million-dollar smile.
—Steve Chagollan, Variety, 16 Sep. 2025
Verb
Her hair was bleach blonde, tousled and pulled back for the mirror selfie.
—Skyler Caruso, PEOPLE, 31 Dec. 2025
The supermodel wore her signature blonde hair long and tousled, with a dense set of bangs.
—Anna Cafolla, Vogue, 15 Nov. 2025
In that original viral campaign launch video, a bearded Platner, his strawberry blonde hair tousled, introduced Maine voters to the issues central to his platform, namely, broad economic populism, taxing billionaires, and universal healthcare.
—Sam Stone, Bon Appetit Magazine, 16 Oct. 2025
Look at Jimmy Fallon, who steered clear of the wrong jokes and tousled the right hair, and is still catching all-caps strays on Truth Social.
—James Folta
september 19, Literary Hub, 19 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for tousled
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
-
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
-
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
Adjective
-
The series does not touch on the tabloid attention that followed the Beckhams in 2004, when it was alleged that David had an affair with his personal assistant, Rebecca Loos, and the many further accusations of cheating that littered gossip columns after.—
Scarlett Harris,
Time,
9 Oct. 2025
-
Cigarette butts are the most littered item on the planet.—
Kurt Knutsson,
FOXNews.com,
16 Aug. 2025
Verb
-
About Bristol, some homeowners as far as Plainville and Southington say they also are disturbed by the sound and have spent the last year and a half pushing their local governments to act.—
Staff Report,
Hartford Courant,
15 Jan. 2026
-
He was also disturbed by the 2016 murder of Labour parliamentarian Jo Cox by a far-right figure associated with neo-Nazi groups who had been radicalized online.—
Andrew Lapin,
Sun Sentinel,
12 Jan. 2026
Adjective
-
The crewneck sweater with button details and batwing sleeves creates an oversized fit that feels effortless without looking sloppy.—
Chaise Sanders,
Travel + Leisure,
16 Jan. 2026
-
The win snapped a two-game losing streak for Joe Mazzulla’s squad, which looked sluggish and sloppy for much of the night.—
Zack Cox,
Boston Herald,
16 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
Cite this Entry
“Tousled.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/tousled. Accessed 18 Jan. 2026.
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