maze

American  

[meyz] / meɪz /

noun

mazes plural

1. a confusing network of intercommunicating paths or passages; labyrinth.

2. any complex system or arrangement that causes bewilderment, confusion, or perplexity.

   Her petition was lost in a maze of bureaucratic red tape.

3. a state of bewilderment or confusion.

4. a winding movement, as in dancing.

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verb (used with object)

mazed, mazing

1. Chiefly Dialect. to daze, perplex, or stupefy.

maze British  

/ meɪz /

noun

1. a complex network of paths or passages, esp one with high hedges in a garden, designed to puzzle those walking through it Compare labyrinth

2. a similar system represented diagrammatically as a pattern of lines

3. any confusing network of streets, pathways, etc

   a maze of paths

4. a state of confusion

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verb

1. an archaic or dialect word for amaze

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• mazedness
  noun
• mazement
  noun
• mazelike
  adjective
• mazedly
  adverb

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• mazes
  plural

Etymology

Origin of maze

1250–1300; Middle English mase, noun use of aphetic variant of amasen to amaze

Explanation

A maze is a puzzle with twists and turns, where you try to find a path from the entrance to the exit without hitting dead ends. You can walk through a maze, or let your pencil do the walking. The goal of a maze is to get through it, which means going the wrong way, retracing your steps, and choosing different paths. There are mazes that you walk through, and mazes on paper where you draw a line to the end. You can also use maze for any complicated system, like the maze of hallways and staircases in an enormous new school. Originally, maze meant "delusion or bewilderment," which captures what it's like to be inside one.

Example Sentences

Simon, who medically retired in 2013, started his career in the now closed Maze prison in 1988.

From BBC • May 13, 2026

It really worked, said Maze, the industry watcher.

From Slate • Aug. 11, 2025

After growing up as a child actor, he had graduated to notable films like “The Maze Runner” and “The Revenant.”

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 8, 2025

The former host of the Crystal Maze is immortalised in his role as Riff Raff in the Rocky Horror Picture Show.

From BBC • Dec. 15, 2024

Thomas returned to the crude map, trying to visualize the Maze and see stone walls where Minho had penciled lines.

From "The Maze Runner" by James Dashner