messy
Americanadjective
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characterized by a dirty, untidy, or disordered condition.
a messy room.
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causing a mess.
a messy recipe; messy work.
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embarrassing, difficult, or unpleasant.
a messy political situation.
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characterized by moral or psychological confusion.
adjective
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Adjectives
Etymology
Origin of messy
Explanation
Messy things are sloppy, disorganized, or dirty. Your messy room isn't bothering anyone but you — but your messy clothes might not be appropriate for your cousin's formal wedding. When a house is messy, it's cluttered and untidy — there might be clothes on the floor or dishes on the table and counters. A messy notebook could be jammed with papers in no particular order, and a child's messy face may very well be covered with chocolate ice cream. Messy dates from the 1840s, and its figurative meaning, "unethical" or "confused," like a messy divorce, came along in the 1920s.
Vocabulary lists containing messy
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.
And while this is a special occasion, we’re urged to get a little messy with our food — to use our hands, to paint with a salad, to draw on a cookie.
From Los Angeles Times • Jul. 8, 2026
About 30 previous categories returned, including the Allison Williams Cool Girl Award, which was given to “Summer House’s” Ciara Miller, who continues riding high following her messy and highly publicized breakup.
From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 18, 2026
Markets may soon have to grapple with another media M&A battle, just months after the end of the messy Warner Bros.
From Barron's • Jun. 17, 2026
How about some smart advice about a messy drama?
From Slate • Jun. 16, 2026
I see her take in the white fence and the messy garden, then the rusted weather vane atop the ever so slightly lopsided roof.
From "How to Disappear Completely" by Ali Standish
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.
