confuse

[ kuhn-fyooz ]
/ kənˈfyuz /
SEE SYNONYMS FOR confuse ON THESAURUS.COM

verb (used with object), con·fused, con·fus·ing.

to perplex or bewilder: The flood of questions confused me.
to make unclear or indistinct: The rumors and angry charges tended to confuse the issue.
to fail to distinguish between; associate by mistake; confound: to confuse dates; He always confuses the twins.
to disconcert or abash: His candor confused her.
to combine without order; jumble; disorder: Try not to confuse the papers on the desk.
Archaic. to bring to ruin or naught.

Origin of confuse

back formation from confused (since early 19th century), Middle English confused < Anglo-French confus (with -ed -ed2 maintaining participial sense) < Latin confūsus, past participle of confundere; see confound

synonym study for confuse

1. Confuse, disconcert, embarrass imply temporary interference with the clear working of one's mind. To confuse is to produce a general bewilderment: to confuse someone by giving complicated directions. To disconcert is to disturb one's mind by irritation, perplexities, etc.: to disconcert someone by asking irrelevant questions. To embarrass is to cause one to be ill at ease or uncomfortable, so that one's usual judgment and presence of mind desert one: to embarrass someone by unexpected rudeness.

OTHER WORDS FROM confuse

Words nearby confuse

confrontationist, confrère, confucian, confucianism, confucius, confuse, confused, confused elderly, confused flour beetle, confusing, confusion

Words related to confused

muddled, bewildered, perplexed, puzzled, distracted, perturbed, befuddled, dazed, disorganized, baffled, chaotic, messy, thrown, gone, abashed, addled, disconcerted, discombobulated, stumped, misled

Example sentences from the Web for confused

British Dictionary definitions for confused (1 of 2)

confused
/ (kənˈfjuːzd) /

adjective

feeling or exhibiting an inability to understand; bewildered; perplexed
in a disordered state; mixed up; jumbled
lacking sufficient mental abilities for independent living, esp through old age

Derived forms of confused

confusedly (kənˈfjuːzɪdlɪ, -ˈfjuːzd-), adverb confusedness, noun

British Dictionary definitions for confused (2 of 2)

confuse
/ (kənˈfjuːz) /

verb (tr)

to bewilder; perplex
to mix up (things, ideas, etc); jumble
to make unclear he confused his talk with irrelevant details
to fail to recognize the difference between; mistake (one thing) for another
to disconcert; embarrass
to cause to become disordered the enemy ranks were confused by gas

Derived forms of confuse

confusable, adjective, noun confusability, noun

Word Origin for confuse

C18: back formation from confused, from Latin confūsus mingled together, from confundere to pour together; see confound