confused
- 1Not able to think clearly or understand what is happening.
Like trying to find your way in thick fog.
I was confused by the new math homework.
Grandpa gets confused when too many people talk at once.
Similarbewildered, puzzled, baffled, perplexed, befuddled
Oppositelucid, clear-headed, alert
Note
- 2Not sure where you are or which way to go.
Like spinning around with your eyes closed and then trying to walk in a straight line.
The hikers got confused in the dark and walked the wrong way.
She woke up confused, not knowing what time it was.
Similardisoriented, lost, bewildered, muddled, befuddled
Oppositeoriented, clear-headed, alert
- 3Mixed up, messy, and without any clear order.
Like a drawer where socks, papers, and toys are all thrown in together.
The papers on his desk were a confused pile.
The game ended in a confused mess of shouting players.
Similarchaotic, jumbled, muddled, disorganized, disordered
Oppositeorderly, organized, clear, systematic
- 4
- 5Past tense and past participle of confuse. Use this form for things that happened in the past.
The signs confused us, and we took the wrong road.
The teacher's fast talking confused the new students.
Note
- 6Feeling shy and uncomfortable because of something that happened.
She turned red and looked confused when everyone sang to her.
When the teacher praised him in front of the class, he went pink and confused and could not look up.
Similarflustered, embarrassed, abashed, disconcerted
Oppositecomposed, calm, collected, poised
Note
Showing meanings only.
confused is a form of confuse
confuse, verb: To make someone unable to think clearly or understand something. Full entry
- Spelling
- confuse → confused: add -d
- Sound
- The ending sounds like /d/.
Practice
Can you tell the meanings of confused apart? Answer 3 quick questions from this page, or write your own sentence and AI will check it.
Origin
This comes from an old Middle English word meaning "frustrated, ruined," which came through French from Latin cōnfūsus, the past participle of cōnfundō.