1
as in to bewilder
to throw into a state of mental uncertainty
the similar-sounding words "censure" and "censor" often confuse people
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in to complicate
to make (something) unclear to the understanding
stop confusing the issue with irrelevant facts
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in to mistake
to fail to differentiate (a thing) from something similar or related
a lot of people confuse popular fame with enduring achievement
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
4
as in to embarrass
to throw into a state of self-conscious distress
she was confused by the shocking bluntness of his marriage proposal
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
5
as in to disrupt
to undo the proper order or arrangement of
vandals had hopelessly confused the papers in the office files
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Examples Sentences
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Recent Examples of confuse
Brown recluse spiders are found mostly in the South and Southwest and are often confused with other brown spiders.
—
Arricca Elin Sansone, Southern Living, 6 Dec. 2024
But the names could lead to issues if people shorten them, confusing them with the northern giant hornet species.
—Saleen Martin, USA TODAY, 5 Dec. 2024
The lawsuit also says Duke participated in campaigns to confuse the public about whether climate change was real to avoid stricter regulations.
—Jeff Brady, NPR, 4 Dec. 2024
Not to be confused with the UK’s historic Elstree Studios, the site provides a home for projects from Comcast’s NBCUniversal, Sky as well as third parties.
—Stewart Clarke, Deadline, 2 Dec. 2024
See all Example Sentences for confuse 
Arricca Elin Sansone, Southern Living, 6 Dec. 2024
But the names could lead to issues if people shorten them, confusing them with the northern giant hornet species.
—Saleen Martin, USA TODAY, 5 Dec. 2024
The lawsuit also says Duke participated in campaigns to confuse the public about whether climate change was real to avoid stricter regulations.
—Jeff Brady, NPR, 4 Dec. 2024
Not to be confused with the UK’s historic Elstree Studios, the site provides a home for projects from Comcast’s NBCUniversal, Sky as well as third parties.
—Stewart Clarke, Deadline, 2 Dec. 2024
See all Example Sentences for confuse
Recent Examples of Synonyms for confuse
Verb
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When Daphna posed the question to the room, Annie looked bewildered.Julia Whelan Krish Seenivasan Lance Neal, New York Times, 25 Nov. 2024
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TikTok user Shannon Dudley Jr., a commercial fisherman from Everglades City, Florida, shared a video of the strange sight that has bewildered viewers.Matt Robison, Newsweek, 20 Nov. 2024
Verb
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These regulations are further complicated by cultural norms and expectations.Rick Hammell, Forbes, 9 Dec. 2024
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And surely office life is complicated by partner hires.Ian Bogost, The Atlantic, 8 Dec. 2024
Verb
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Without signaling this, people who have not experienced this style of leadership before might mistake you as such and proceed to tell your agents that this is an issue and a derailer on your path to promotion.Stephen Miles, Forbes, 9 Dec. 2024
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Dylan, clearly thinking about food, mistakes the question, thinking he’s being asked about bratwurst.Mitchell Peters, Billboard, 8 Dec. 2024
Verb
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If two people actually did this on a real-life New Year’s Eve TV show today, the clip would immediately go viral and everyone would be making fun of them on social media with snarky commentary and embarrassing GIFs and a hashtag: #newyearscrazydance.Bob Sassone, Vulture, 19 Dec. 2024
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And then, on this trip in the last several days, living in the shadow of this larger-than-life character and feeling constantly put upon and shamed by him and embarrassed by him.Destiny Jackson, Deadline, 12 Dec. 2024
Verb
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Pearson, 28, became an effective multi-inning reliever after getting traded from Toronto (2.73 ERA in 19 appearances), and the Cubs probably won’t want to disrupt that momentum.Sahadev Sharma, The Athletic, 17 Dec. 2024
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Shiite militias from Iraq and Syria launched rockets and drones to disrupt Israel’s advanced air defense systems, but these efforts posed no significant threat to them.Amos Yadlin, Foreign Affairs, 17 Dec. 2024
Verb
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At first, Benji’s friends and family were perplexed.Amelia Tait, WIRED, 5 Dec. 2024
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Dollar said she was perplexed by the explanation because her supervisor Kado-Fong had been trying to get the OK to have Dollar receive training to prepare her for the technician role.Suhauna Hussain, Los Angeles Times, 1 Dec. 2024
Verb
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Fleming discussed how luxury products are increasingly being treated as collectible items, similar to limited-edition art pieces, further blurring the lines between art and commercial fashion.Arthur Zaczkiewicz, WWD, 15 Dec. 2024
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Meanwhile, on the ingredient front, peptides are making their way into shampoos, serums, and scalp sprays, blurring the lines between skin care and hair care.Sam Escobar, Allure, 13 Dec. 2024
Verb
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The defensive line wasn’t any better and never flustered Tagovailoa.Chad Graff, The Athletic, 24 Nov. 2024
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On Wednesday, Richard Gere followed in the footsteps of Cher by flustering an unsuspecting Today Show host during a live interview.Shania Russell, EW.com, 20 Nov. 2024
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Cite this Entry
“Confuse.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/confuse. Accessed 22 Dec. 2024.
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