confuse

A2 Topic:Mind & Cognition

US /kənˈfjuːz/ See IPA manual

Freq #8198

Meanings

1

verb
To make someone unable to think clearly or understand something.

It confused me when I arrived at the office and nobody was there.
2

verb
To mistake one person or thing for another.

People often confuse the two brothers because they look so alike.
3

verb
To make something harder to understand or less clear.

Their conflicting remarks only confused the debate.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

1 verb · to make someone unable to... puzzle bewilder

2 verb · to mistake one person or... mix up confound

3 verb · to make something harder to... obscure

More addle bafflebaffoundbamboozle bedevil befuddle bemud bemuse blindbumfuzzlecomplicate

Opposites

clarify distinguish enlighten inspirejudicatemediate organise organize reconcile stabilize

Word family

Forms confuses

Derived forms confuddleconfusabilityconfusableconfusementconfuserconfusibleconfusopolyconfuzzlecoonfusedeconfusereconfuseunconfuse

Related forms blur conflate confused confusing confusiondiscombobulatesurprise surprising

Etymology

Back-formation from confused, from Middle English confused (“frustrated, ruined”), from Anglo-Norman confus, from Latin cōnfūsus, past participle of cōnfundō.

*ǵʰewd- Proto-Indo-European confused Middle English confus xno cōnfūsus Latin

View etymology graph ->

External links

# confuse

**Type:** Word
**Level:** A2
**Part of speech:** verb
**IPA (US):** /kənˈfjuːz/
**Frequency rank:** 8198

## Meanings
1. To make someone unable to think clearly or understand something.
2. To mistake one person or thing for another.
3. To make something harder to understand or less clear.

## Examples
- It confused me when I arrived at the office and nobody was there.
- People often confuse the two brothers because they look so alike.
- Their conflicting remarks only confused the debate.

## Synonyms
- addle
- baffle
- baffound
- bamboozle
- bedevil
- befuddle
- bemud
- bemuse
- bewilder
- blind
- bumfuzzle
- complicate

## Antonyms
- clarify
- distinguish
- enlighten
- inspire
- judicate
- mediate
- organise
- organize
- reconcile
- stabilize

## Derived Forms
- confuddle
- confusability
- confusable
- confusement
- confuser
- confusible
- confusopoly
- confuzzle
- coonfuse
- deconfuse
- reconfuse
- unconfuse

## Related Forms
- blur
- conflate
- confused
- confusing
- confusion
- discombobulate
- surprise
- surprising

## Roots and Affixes
- Root: *ǵʰewd-
- Root: confused
- Root: confus
- Root: cōnfūsus

## Etymology
Back-formation from confused, from Middle English confused (“frustrated, ruined”), from Anglo-Norman confus, from Latin cōnfūsus, past participle of cōnfundō.

## AI Etymology
confuse is a verb. Back-formation from confused, from Middle English confused (“frustrated, ruined”), from Anglo-Norman confus, from Latin cōnfūsus, past participle of cōnfundō. Historical forms in the chain include *ǵʰewd- (Proto-Indo-European), confused (Middle English), confus (Anglo-Norman), and cōnfūsus (Latin). Current senses include to make someone unable to think clearly or understand something, to mistake one person or thing for another, and to make something harder to understand or less clear. Derived forms include confuddle, confusability, confusable, confusement, and confuser. Related words include blur, conflate, confused, and confusing.

## Topics
- Mind & Cognition

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confuse

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