Meaning of muddle in English

1. Pronunciation

   /ˈmədl/

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   UK accent

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1. Verb

   muddle

   Etymology

   late Middle English (in the sense ‘wallow in mud’): perhaps from Middle Dutch moddelen, frequentative of modden‘dabble in mud’; compare with mud. The sense ‘confuse’ was initially associated with alcoholic drink (late 17th century), giving rise to ‘busy oneself in a confused way’ and ‘jumble up’ (mid 19th century)

   Definitions

   1. make into a puddle

   Examples

   • « puddled mire »
2. 2. mix up or confuse

   Examples

   • « He muddled the issues »

3. Noun

   muddle

   Definitions

   1. a confused multitude of things
4. 2. informal terms for a difficult situation

   Examples

   • « he got into a terrible fix »
   • « he made a muddle of his marriage »