Dictionary.com
Thesaurus.com
Showing results for befog. Search instead for befogged.
Synonyms

befog

American  
[bih-fog, -fawg] / bɪˈfɒg, -ˈfɔg /

verb (used with object)

befogged, befogging
  1. to envelop in fog or obscurity; becloud.

    Low-hanging clouds befogged the city.

  2. to render unclear; confuse by irrelevancies or distractions.

    Petty differences befogged the legislators' task.

    Synonyms:
    obfuscate, muddle, blur, confound

befog British  
/ bɪˈfɒɡ /

verb

  1. to surround with fog

  2. to make confused, vague, or less clear

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of befog

First recorded in 1595–1605; be- + fog 1


Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

See Examples For:

After adding befog, we’ve guessed more than three letters for more than 96 percent of all puzzles we might face in Wordle, in four guesses.

From Slate ● Feb. 5, 2022

No irrational, misguided sentimentality shall befog my firm conviction that Bob Cousy, while still at Holy Cross, retired the title to "The Greatest."

From Time Magazine Archive

Strife and confusion, however bewildering, must never befog their vision.

From The Advent of Divine Justice by Shoghi Effendi

Men who do not wish to do their duty purposely befog great issues by noisy talk and tiresome academic discussions of trivial details; and such men are the curse and scourge of reform movements.

From Our Vanishing Wild Life Its Extermination and Preservation by William Temple Hornaday

When he does not do so, it is usually because his instructions have been so doubtful as to befog him or give him a reasonable excuse for noncompliance.

From The Armed Forces Officer Department of the Army Pamphlet 600-2 by United States. Dept. of Defense

So many years later, the “idealism” of that moment proved to be a mirage, viewed through the befogged lens of hubris, clouded by lies.

From New York Times ● Oct. 18, 2019

She wasn’t befogged, as their father had been.

From The New Yorker ● Mar. 18, 2019

But then you arrive and everything is damp, blurred, befogged.

From Washington Post ● Oct. 11, 2018

Instead of being buried under documents, befogged by facts, you find yourself in the immediate, proximate, breathing presence of another human being — and there’s suddenly no room for anything else.

From Washington Post

When you shout Durham! the gloomy and befogged financial atmosphere becomes clear and there is a mad rush and scramble for her bonds.

From "The Best of Enemies" by Osha Gray Davidson

From the frozen Moscow River, from the Kremlin, and the Cathedral of St. Basil, a vapor rose, clouding the skies and befogging the stars.

From Time Magazine Archive

Yet that could not explain the hypnotism the man had for me, befogging, as it sometimes did, an honest estimate.

From The Best Short Stories of 1921 and the Yearbook of the American Short Story by Edward J. (Edward Joseph Harrington) O'Brien

He had not been German long enough for befogging his mind to that point, but the moment was decisive for much to come, especially for political morals.

From The Education of Henry Adams by Henry Adams

The greatest trouble comes through the befogging emotions.

From Nerves and Common Sense by Annie Payson Call

And if he didn't he'd tell you so, without befogging the atmosphere with a lot of things he did know, but that wouldn't help you in the least.

From The Man Who Rocked the Earth by Robert Williams Wood

Random Word

Spin the wheel and learn a new word!

Get a word


Vocabulary.com logo
by dictionary.com

Dictionary.com's Learning Companion

Go beyond just looking up words.
Remember them forever with VocabTrainer.

Start training