maze

American  

[meyz] / meɪz /

noun

1. a confusing network of intercommunicating paths or passages; labyrinth.

2. any complex system or arrangement that causes bewilderment, confusion, or perplexity.

   Her petition was lost in a maze of bureaucratic red tape.

3. a state of bewilderment or confusion.

4. a winding movement, as in dancing.

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verb (used with object)

mazed, mazing

1. Chiefly Dialect. to daze, perplex, or stupefy.

maze British  

/ meɪz /

noun

1. a complex network of paths or passages, esp one with high hedges in a garden, designed to puzzle those walking through it Compare labyrinth

2. a similar system represented diagrammatically as a pattern of lines

3. any confusing network of streets, pathways, etc

   a maze of paths

4. a state of confusion

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verb

1. an archaic or dialect word for amaze

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• mazelike
  adjective
• intermaze
  verb (used with object)
• mazement
  noun
• mazedly
  adverb
• mazedness
  noun

Etymology

Origin of maze

1250–1300; Middle English mase, noun use of aphetic variant of amasen to amaze

Explanation

A maze is a puzzle with twists and turns, where you try to find a path from the entrance to the exit without hitting dead ends. You can walk through a maze, or let your pencil do the walking. The goal of a maze is to get through it, which means going the wrong way, retracing your steps, and choosing different paths. There are mazes that you walk through, and mazes on paper where you draw a line to the end. You can also use maze for any complicated system, like the maze of hallways and staircases in an enormous new school. Originally, maze meant "delusion or bewilderment," which captures what it's like to be inside one.

Example Sentences

“It’s like being stuck in a maze and no matter what path you choose there’s just black holes everywhere that you keep falling into,” he says before launching into a traumatic memory.

From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 3, 2026

These maze domains can change abruptly as temperatures rise or fall, influencing how energy is lost in the material.

From Science Daily • May 18, 2026

The maze of shadowy streets around the New York Stock Exchange has been rarely associated with elegant, arty escapes.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 12, 2026

The comment sections became a maze of people trying to be helpful by identifying the subject of the post, while other folks offered their theories as to why Dylan was posting this particular content.

From Salon • May 12, 2026

Even a hedge maze, an actual maze made of six-foot-high bushes.

From "The Bletchley Riddle" by Ruta Sepetys and Steve Sheinkin