bedazzle
Americanverb (used with object)
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to impress forcefully, especially so as to make oblivious to faults or shortcomings.
Audiences were bedazzled by her charm.
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to dazzle so as to blind or confuse.
The glare of the headlights bedazzled him.
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to adorn with features that are brilliant, sparkly, splendid, etc..
You don’t need to bedazzle your business card with glitter, but does it stand out from the crowd?
Both the wealthy and the common flapper could bedazzle themselves in the popular long necklaces of the day.
verb
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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bedazzlesimple
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bedazzlessimple
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have bedazzledperfect
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has bedazzledperfect
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am bedazzlingprogressive
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are bedazzlingprogressive
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is bedazzlingprogressive
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have been bedazzlingperfect progressive
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has been bedazzlingperfect progressive
Past
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bedazzledsimple
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had bedazzledperfect
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was bedazzlingprogressive
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were bedazzlingprogressive
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had been bedazzlingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of bedazzle
Explanation
To bedazzle is to charm or impress someone, sometimes to the extent that they feel confused or overwhelmed. A charismatic speaker might bedazzle her audience so much that they all want to buy her new book. Something can literally bedazzle you, or blind you a little bit: the sun glinting off the ocean around your sailboat might bedazzle you. It's more common, however, to find this verb used in a figurative way, when a person amazes or impresses you. The root of bedazzle, the Middle English dasen, or "daze," possibly stems from the Middle Dutch word of the same spelling, which means "act silly."
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:
Especially the marvelous starry seed heads of A. christophii and A. schubertii that are durable enough to bedazzle the garden all summer.
From Seattle Times ● Nov. 12, 2022
On days over the years when I wasn’t reviewing, we would on occasion get to go backstage, an opportunity I grabbed only if I thought it would bedazzle my daughter.
From Washington Post ● Nov. 4, 2022
It's an unexpectedly sentimental exercise to take stock of how you bedazzle, spice, umami and sweeten your eating life — almost like paging through old photo albums.
From Salon ● Aug. 14, 2022
Many called in favors from the vast network of artisans they rely on to dye, bedazzle, tailor and weave cloth and thread into compelling stories for the rest of us to enjoy.
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 24, 2017
She had hunted out the seed shops to taste their lichees, various as wines, and bought a sack that was taller than a child to bedazzle the nieces and nephews.
From "The Woman Warrior" by Maxine Hong Kingston
“Behold a Broadway musical that sings, dances and bedazzles so magnetically, it feels as if it were ordained for the screen by divine providence. ‘
From Washington Post ● Dec. 26, 2022
Behold a Broadway musical that sings, dances and bedazzles so magnetically, it feels as if it were ordained for the screen by divine providence.
From Washington Post ● Dec. 19, 2022
The production and props designer Stephanie Osin Cohen bedazzles an already palatial Long Island mansion in Lake Success, complete with a museum-worthy collection of framed Pomeranian portraits.
From New York Times ● May 23, 2021
She nudges the English to give it a Cuban tone, respectful of the brutal efficiency of Mr. Padura’s Spanish, while never sacrificing the lyrical flourishes with which he occasionally bedazzles his readers.
From New York Times ● Jan. 21, 2014
This spot, so very African, bedazzles you in the daytime with flashings as of steel.
From La Sorcière: The Witch of the Middle Ages by Michelet, Jules
We are more than halfway through the North American installment of Gianni Infantino’s bedazzled global soccer smorgasbord, and even the ball-deflating soccer grinches among us must confess the action’s been…fairly irresistible.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 29, 2026
It came 26 years after Madonna wore a bedazzled "Kylie Minogue" tank top at the MTV Europe Music Awards in Sweden: A gesture of solidarity that took the Aussie pop star by surprise.
From BBC ● Jun. 26, 2026
But staying afloat is a full-time hustle, especially when bedazzled Corvette, headstrong Sade and dippy Mariah don’t always agree on their squad goals.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 21, 2026
But she does have useful talents: fluent French and the ability to conjure delicious Sunday dinners for her bedazzled colleagues.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 22, 2026
“Is that so? Well, did you know I am often envious of your bedazzled ghost clothing?”
From "Witchlings" by Claribel A. Ortega
Wilber and his sister had spent days decorating the cap, bedazzling the bottom half in blue and white gems — the colors of the Nicaraguan flag.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 17, 2026
A white paper bag, Speedee the chef and a bedazzling roadside memory.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 20, 2026
Speaking ahead of the final, Ghouri said her time on Strictly had been "an absolute dream, especially bedazzling my cochlear implant".
From BBC ● Dec. 13, 2024
My mother is his enabler, sewing the sequins onto his blue satin capes, bedazzling the ivory jumpsuit with the deep V-neck.
From New York Times ● Mar. 1, 2024
She looked as pretty as she ever was, but not in any way different, not enchanting, not bedazzling in her daughters’ eyes, at least not in mine.
From "Summer of the Mariposas" by Guadalupe García McCall
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.
