messy
Americanadjective
-
messier,
comparative
-
messiest
superlative
-
characterized by a dirty, untidy, or disordered condition.
a messy room.
-
causing a mess.
a messy recipe; messy work.
-
embarrassing, difficult, or unpleasant.
a messy political situation.
-
characterized by moral or psychological confusion.
adjective
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Adjectives
Etymology
Origin of messy
Explanation
Messy things are sloppy, disorganized, or dirty. Your messy room isn't bothering anyone but you — but your messy clothes might not be appropriate for your cousin's formal wedding. When a house is messy, it's cluttered and untidy — there might be clothes on the floor or dishes on the table and counters. A messy notebook could be jammed with papers in no particular order, and a child's messy face may very well be covered with chocolate ice cream. Messy dates from the 1840s, and its figurative meaning, "unethical" or "confused," like a messy divorce, came along in the 1920s.
Vocabulary lists containing messy
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:
He has to make a decision that might hurt other people or get messy, and he’s not a messy guy at all.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 31, 2026
It was a messy and indecisive conflict, but its importance as a formative event in Canada’s multilingual, multicultural national identity was enormous.
From Salon ● Aug. 31, 2026
Courts here will have to rely on a messy rules governing conflicts of law.
From Slate ● Aug. 28, 2026
There were, however, extenuating circumstances, in that he was 12th fastest before failing to improve on a messy final lap hindered by a sub-optimal 'prep' lap which left his tyres out of the 'window'.
From BBC ● Aug. 25, 2026
If the bedroom I shared with Camille had ever looked this messy, Dad would have had a panic attack.
From "South of Somewhere" by Kalena Miller
And the messier things become, as they did again in the past two weeks, the more out of touch many tech leaders appear.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 30, 2026
Their findings suggest that "early Neo-Assyrian political history was much messier, but also more interesting, than has so far been recognized."
From Science Daily ● Aug. 26, 2026
Love has always been central to FLO's music, but on this album they explore its messier realities, with nights out providing the backdrop for stories of heartbreak, healing and friendship.
From BBC ● Jul. 31, 2026
“This deal may still close or it may not. ... The path to either outcome just got longer, messier, and likely more expensive.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 25, 2026
Diego’s bathroom was messier and more disorganized than his bedroom.
From "We Are the Ants" by Shaun David Hutchinson
Of all the fronts in the AI wars—funding, electricity, chips—the messiest is the fight for human capital.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 25, 2026
While Marvel certainly isn’t the most esteemed studio in contemporary filmmaking, it’s turning into the messiest.
From Salon ● Jul. 25, 2025
A place where country music, with all its contradictions and complexities, embraces its messiest, queerest, most joyful self.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 9, 2025
The messiest divorce in Seahawks history will be all but forgotten as two Super Bowl winners reminisce on the good times and block out the gloomy ones.
From Seattle Times ● Oct. 28, 2023
The area around my bed was the messiest part of the room, except for the area under my bed, which was even worse.
From "Kira-Kira" by Cynthia Kadohata
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
