messy
Americanadjective
-
messier,
comparative
-
messiest
superlative
-
characterized by a dirty, untidy, or disordered condition.
a messy room.
-
causing a mess.
a messy recipe; messy work.
-
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.
See Examples For:
If Democratic Sen. Gary Peters—who in congressional terms is but a 67-year-old whippersnapper—had sought reelection, the messy primary that set up Stevens’ about-face never would’ve happened.
From Slate ● Nov. 2, 2026
I would describe it as a situation rather than a messy love triangle — only because one interesting thing about the show is that these people are not 23.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 23, 2026
"But I was still deprived of any choice over my own death by the current messy criminal law."
From BBC ● Oct. 20, 2026
The appeal of strips is based on convenience: Pills can be hard to swallow, powders can be messy and gummies can be sugary.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 19, 2026
I scratched at my hair, which was still messy from sleeping.
From Absolutely Almost by Lisa Graff
As a result, he says, "I think readers are coming to value very obviously personal writing, and maybe even writing that's messier, less structurally sound or composed or perfected, than they maybe once would've desired."
From BBC ● Oct. 10, 2026
The Dodgers will save the messier celebration for clinching the division.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 15, 2026
Their findings suggest that "early Neo-Assyrian political history was much messier, but also more interesting, than has so far been recognized."
From Science Daily ● Aug. 26, 2026
It becomes a little compressed, a little messier and somehow more itself.
From Salon ● Jul. 30, 2026
“That would mean Finn had to listen for once, instead of talking,” Emma said, rubbing Finn’s head fondly and making his messy brown hair even messier.
From "The Strangers" by Margaret Peterson Haddix
Of all the fronts in the AI wars—funding, electricity, chips—the messiest is the fight for human capital.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 25, 2026
The messiest divorce in Seahawks history will be all but forgotten as two Super Bowl winners reminisce on the good times and block out the gloomy ones.
From Seattle Times ● Oct. 28, 2023
Her untidy nights of cake with friends on the floor of an old house are our warmest and messiest memories.
From New York Times ● May 23, 2023
"Nip/Tuck," "House, M.D." and the messiest doctors on "Grey's Anatomy" hook us with their private drama.
From Salon ● Feb. 3, 2023
The area around my bed was the messiest part of the room, except for the area under my bed, which was even worse.
From "Kira-Kira" by Cynthia Kadohata
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Get a wordDefinitions 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.
