muddy
Americanadjective
-
abounding in or covered with mud.
-
not clear or pure.
muddy colors.
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cloudy with sediment.
muddy coffee.
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dull, as the complexion.
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not clear mentally.
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obscure or vague, as thought, expression, or literary style.
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Horse Racing. denoting the condition of a track after a heavy, continuous rainfall has ceased and been completely absorbed into the surface, leaving it the consistency of thick mud.
verb (used with object)
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to make muddy; soil with mud.
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to make turbid.
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to cause to be confused or obscure.
verb (used without object)
adjective
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covered or filled with mud
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not clear or bright
muddy colours
-
cloudy
a muddy liquid
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(esp of thoughts) confused or vague
verb
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Adjectives
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
muddysimple
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muddiessimple
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have muddiedperfect
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has muddiedperfect
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am muddyingprogressive
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are muddyingprogressive
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is muddyingprogressive
-
have been muddyingperfect progressive
-
has been muddyingperfect progressive
Past
-
muddiedsimple
-
had muddiedperfect
-
was muddyingprogressive
-
were muddyingprogressive
-
had been muddyingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of muddy
First recorded in 1375–1425, muddy is from the late Middle English word muddi. See mud, -y 1
Explanation
Muddy is a verb that means to make dirty with mud. You might muddy up your mom's white shag rug if you don't take off your dirty hiking boots before you walk inside. The meaning of muddy is easy to remember: just look at the root word mud and think about smearing it on something. Muddy is also an adjective that describes something that's dirty and messy. When you're a child, you often end up looking muddy after playing outside, because you've been splashing in puddles and playing in the leaves. Muddy can also describe soil that's waterlogged, like your vegetable garden after a big rainstorm.
Vocabulary lists containing muddy
Can You Dig It? Words for Dirt and Soil
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Common Five-letter Words for Wordle, List 3
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Cormac McCarthy's "The Road"
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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.
Short seller Muddy Waters Research accused SoFi of understating debt and intentionally diluting shareholders in a March report—claims SoFi called “factually inaccurate and misleading.”
From Barron's • May 29, 2026
Keith, a guitar player, notices that Mick has a stack of records under his arm, including albums by Chuck Berry and Muddy Waters.
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 17, 2026
SoFi stock has fallen 40% this year as of Wednesday’s close of trading, weighed down by a brutal market for fintech and allegations of accounting mishandling by the short seller Muddy Waters Research.
From Barron's • Apr. 2, 2026
Because the timing of labor market displacement is so uncertain, Muddy Waters recommends using derivative exposure to take a bearish view on corporate credit.
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 1, 2026
Muddy waves crested, dragging along branches torn from trees upstream.
From "Dog Squad" by Chris Grabenstein
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.
