bewilder

[bih-wil-der]

See more synonyms for bewilder on Thesaurus.com

verb (used with object)

to confuse or puzzle completely; perplex: These shifting attitudes bewilder me.

Origin of bewilder

First recorded in 1675–85; be- + wilder¹

Synonyms for bewilder

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mystify, nonplus, confuse, daze, confound, stagger, muddle.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words for bewilder

mystify, confound, stump, perplex, rattle, befuddle, puzzle, bemuse, upset, distract, baffle, daze, stupefy, fluster, disconcert, snow, floor, throw, muddle, addle

Examples from the Web for bewilder

Contemporary Examples of bewilder

A purse can impress and intimidate, bewilder, berate, or amuse.
The Language of Margaret Thatcher’s Handbags
Robin Givhan
April 8, 2013

Historical Examples of bewilder

Now it assembles the blossoms of a whole long year to bewilder and allure.
The Spenders
Harry Leon Wilson
It is only the artificial and the complex that bewilder them.
The Gorgon's Head
Nathaniel Hawthorne
She was sufficiently unlike the usual Miss Ffrench to bewilder any one.
The Flying Mercury
Eleanor M. Ingram
They bewilder us, but they fail to make a solemn impression.
Fragments of science, V. 1-2
John Tyndall
Certainly it was enough to bewilder any man, and Paul was utterly dazed.
Caught In The Net
Emile Gaboriau

British Dictionary definitions for bewilder

bewilder

verb (tr)

to confuse utterly; puzzle
archaic to cause to become lost

Derived Formsbewilderment, noun

Word Origin for bewilder

C17: see be-, wilder

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

Word Origin and History for bewilder

1680s, from be- "thoroughly" + archaic wilder "lead astray, lure into the wilds," probably a back-formation of wilderness. An earlier word with the same sense was bewhape (early 14c.). Related: Bewildered; bewildering; bewilderingly.