muddle
Americanverb (used with object)
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to mix up in a confused or bungling manner; jumble.
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to cause to become mentally confused.
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to cause to become confused or stupid with or as if with an intoxicating drink.
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to make muddy or turbid, as water.
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to mix, crush, or mash (an ingredient) into a drink, especially with a muddler.
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to mix or stir (a cocktail, chocolate, etc.).
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Ceramics. to smooth (clay) by rubbing it on glass.
verb (used without object)
noun
verb phrase
verb
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(often foll by up) to mix up (objects, items, etc); jumble
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to confuse
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to make (water) muddy or turbulent
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to mix or stir (alcoholic drinks, etc)
noun
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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muddlednessnoun
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muddlementnoun
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premuddlenoun
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muddledadjective
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muddlingadjective
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muddlyadjective
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muddlinglyadverb
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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muddlesimple
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muddlessimple
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have muddledperfect
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has muddledperfect
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am muddlingprogressive
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are muddlingprogressive
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is muddlingprogressive
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have been muddlingperfect progressive
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has been muddlingperfect progressive
Past
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muddledsimple
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had muddledperfect
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was muddlingprogressive
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were muddlingprogressive
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had been muddlingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of muddle
First recorded in 1540–50; mud + -le; cognate with Middle Dutch moddelen “to muddy”
Explanation
A muddle is something that's messy and confusing. If your bedroom looks like a hurricane just hit it, you might describe it as a muddle. Oftentimes, we create the muddles in our lives, so it’s appropriate that muddle can be used as a verb meaning “to mix up” or “confuse.” Conveniently, though, the word muddle also describes a way out of difficult situations; to muddle through a troublesome task is to somehow figure it out, even if you don’t quite know what you’re doing. It has been suggested that muddle comes from an old Dutch word meaning “to make muddy.”
Vocabulary lists containing muddle
In a Pickle: Words for When You're in Trouble
Looking to grow your vocabulary? Check out this interactive, curated word list from our team of English language specialists at Vocabulary.com – one of over 17,000 lists we've built to help learners worldwide!
The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn
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Bridge to Terabithia
Want to remember this word for good? Start your learning journey today with our library of interactive, themed word lists built by the experts at Vocabulary.com – we'll help you make the most of your study time!
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:
Daco recently raised the chance of a U.S. recession to 40% because of these worries, but he still thinks the economy is sturdy enough to muddle along.
From MarketWatch ● May 29, 2026
So the best investors can hope for in the U.K. is probably that the government will muddle through without succumbing to a political or fiscal collapse.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 21, 2026
"I do 12-hour shifts at work and trying to muddle all of them together has just been really hard," Clark says.
From BBC ● Feb. 21, 2026
Another muddle concerns his expectations of economic gains from artificial intelligence.
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 3, 2026
“Reshi, you can’t just let them muddle through this on their own.”
From "The Name of the Wind" by Patrick Rothfuss
That may be a greenlight for investors to take a closer look at well-positioned companies, even if China’s economy merely muddles along.
From Barron's ● Jun. 23, 2026
Whether that enhances public health, erodes it or simply muddles the conversation further remains an open question.
From Salon ● Jan. 10, 2026
“He just muddles through and uses Google Images and sort of figures it out that way.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 23, 2025
Nabulsi, unfortunately, muddles the story with multiple subplots, some inelegant acting and contrived English-language dialogue.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 18, 2025
He muddles his vowel sounds, drops some consonants and even whole syllables.
From "Drama High" by Michael Sokolove
The legends surrounding the team can, at times, become muddled.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 26, 2026
If anything, it muddled our relationship, the communicative signals of the PetPhone confusing Clover and ultimately making me feel distanced from her.
From Slate ● Jun. 20, 2026
It’s a picaresque, fantastical and often absurdly funny curiosity, but little more than that—and more than a little muddled.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 21, 2026
After all, Mary’s details are vague and muddled.
From Salon ● Apr. 24, 2026
“Lupine and foxglove. Them, they always muddled me. Both tall.”
From "The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing, Traitor to the Nation, Volume II: The Kingdom on the Waves" by M.T. Anderson
The timeline for investments is often years, muddling the near-term outlook for manufacturing.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 3, 2026
“If I were to do this at a craft level, I would suggest muddling fresh ginger, fresh lime juice and sugar,” he says.
From Salon ● Jan. 18, 2026
That’s partly because the plot can veer into far-fetched territory, but also because we see the story unfold from two different viewpoints, muddling the truth.
From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 17, 2025
Just two weeks before a pivotal meeting, the Federal Reserve said the U.S. economy has been just muddling along as of late.
From MarketWatch ● Nov. 26, 2025
Ajay would head to the secondary school on a nearby island and keep muddling along for a few more years of schooling.
From "Tiger Boy" by Mitali Perkins
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.
