flummox
[ fluhm-uh ks ]
/ ˈflʌm əks /
verb (used with object) Informal.
to bewilder; confound; confuse.
Nearby words
flukey, fluky, flumadiddle, flume, flummery, flummox, flump, flung, flunisolide, flunitrazepam, flunk
Origin of flummox
First recorded in 1830–40; origin uncertain
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019
Examples from the Web for flummox
What wine to serve at Thanksgiving can flummox even the heartiest of gourmands.
British Dictionary definitions for flummox
flummox
/ (ˈflʌməks) /
verb
(tr) to perplex or bewilder
Word Origin for flummox
C19: of unknown origin
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
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Word Origin and History for flummox
flummox
1837, cant word, origin uncertain, probably from some forgotten British dialect. Candidates cluster in Herefordshire, Gloucestershire, southern Cheshire and also in Sheffield. "The formation seems to be onomatopœic, expressive of the notion of throwing down roughly and untidily." Never let it be said that the OED editors lacked imagination. Related: Flummoxed.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper