Dictionary.com
Thesaurus.com
Synonyms

clear as mud

Idioms  

  1. Murky, obscure, totally unclear, as in The translation of these directions is clear as mud. This ironic phrase always indicates that something is far from clear. [Early 1800s]

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.

“It’s about as clear as mud right now,” he said.

From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 9, 2025

What looked superficially as a clear win for AI companies in their long battle to use copyrighted material without paying for it to feed their chatbots, now looks clear as mud.

From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 27, 2025

"It is as clear as mud," says Mr Down.

From BBC • Apr. 4, 2025

And yet again, the picture there is clear as mud.

From Reuters • Sep. 18, 2023

Joe certainly had a way of making everything as clear as mud.

From "The Milagro Beanfield War" by John Nichols

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.