muddle

muddle
mud|dle1 [ˈmʌdl] n
1.) be in a muddle/get into a muddle
BrE
a) to be confused
▪ I'm in such a muddle, I'd completely forgotten you were coming today.
be in a muddle/get into a muddle over/about
▪ My grandmother tends to get into a muddle over names.
b) to be untidy or in a disorganized state
▪ Sorry about the mess - we're in a bit of a muddle at the moment.
▪ All my files have got into a muddle somehow.
2.) [C usually singular, U]
when there is confusion about something, and things are done wrong as a result
▪ Our accountant finally managed to sort out the muddle.
muddle over/about
▪ There was a bit of a muddle over our hotel reservations.
muddle 2
muddle2 also muddle up v [T] especially BrE
[Date: 1500-1600; Origin: Probably from early Dutch moddelen 'to make muddy', from Middle Dutch modde 'mud']
1.) to put things in the wrong order
▪ Someone's muddled up all the papers on my desk.
▪ Recently the government seems to have lost its way and muddled its priorities.
2.) to confuse one person or thing with another, and make a mistake
= ↑mix up
▪ The twins are so alike that it's easy to muddle them up.
▪ Spanish and Italian are very similar and I sometimes get them muddled up .
muddle sth with sth
▪ Be careful not to muddle the files you've already worked on with the others.
3.) to confuse someone, especially so that they make a mistake
▪ Don't muddle her with all the extra details at the moment.
▪ Could you just repeat those figures - I've got a bit muddled up .
muddle along/on phr v
to continue doing something without having any clear plan or purpose, or without having enough help or support
▪ There's no point in muddling on in the same old job for ever.
▪ Many of the students complained that they were left to muddle along on their own.
muddle through () [muddle through (sth)] phr v
to succeed in doing something with difficulty, or not in a very satisfactory way
▪ There were some difficult questions but I managed to muddle through.
▪ The team managed to muddle through another season.

Dictionary of contemporary English. 2013.

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Synonyms:
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Look at other dictionaries:

  • muddle on — ˌmuddle a ˈlong ˌmuddle ˈon [intransitive] [present tense I/you/we/they muddle along he/she/it muddles along …   Useful english dictionary

  • Muddle — Mud dle, v. t. [imp. & p. p. {Muddled}; p. pr. & vb. n. {Muddling}.] [From {Mud}.] 1. To make turbid, or muddy, as water. [Obs.] [1913 Webster] He did ill to muddle the water. L Estrange. [1913 Webster] 2. To cloud or stupefy; to render stupid… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • muddle up — ˌmuddle ˈup [transitive] [present tense I/you/we/they muddle up he/she/it muddles up present participle muddling up past tense …   Useful english dictionary

  • muddle — ► VERB 1) bring into a disordered or confusing state. 2) confuse or perplex (someone). 3) (muddle up) confuse (two or more things) with each other. 4) (muddle along/through) cope more or less satisfactorily. ► NOUN ▪ a mudd …   English terms dictionary

  • Muddle — Mud dle, n. A state of being turbid or confused; hence, intellectual cloudiness or dullness. [1913 Webster] We both grub on in a muddle. Dickens. [1913 Webster] …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • Muddle — may refer to: Mr. Muddle, one of the Mr. Men from the children s book series by Richard Hargreaves MDL (programming language), the Lisp derived language that Zork was first written in MUDDL, a programming language originally created for the first …   Wikipedia

  • muddle# — muddle vb *confuse, addle, fuddle, befuddle Analogous words: *puzzle, perplex, mystify, bewilder, distract, nonplus, confound, dumbfound: faze, rattle, discomfit, *embarrass: fluster, flurry, upset, agitate, *discompose Antonyms: enlighten muddle …   New Dictionary of Synonyms

  • muddle — [n] confused state ataxia, awkwardness, botch, chaos, clutter, complexity, complication, confusion, daze, difficulty, dilemma, disarrangement, disarray, disorder, disorganization, emergency, encumbrance, fog, foul up*, hash, haze, intricacy,… …   New thesaurus

  • muddle — [mud′ l] vt. muddled, muddling [< MUD + LE] 1. to mix up in a confused manner; jumble; bungle 2. to mix or stir (a drink, etc.) 3. to make (water, etc.) turbid 4. to confuse mentally; befuddle, as with alcoholic liquor …   English World dictionary

  • Muddle — Mud dle, v. i. 1. To dabble in mud. [Obs.] Swift. [1913 Webster] 2. To think and act in a confused, aimless way. [1913 Webster] …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • muddle — I verb addle, baffle, becloud, befog, befuddle, bewilder, botch, bungle, cloud, complicate, confound, confundere, confuse, daze, derange, disarrange, discompose, disconcert, disorder, disorganize, disturb, embrangle, entangle, fluster, fog,… …   Law dictionary

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