- bewilder
- \ \ see WILD
Word origins - 2ed. J. Ayto. 2005.
bewilder
Look at other dictionaries:
Bewilder — Be*wil der, v. t. [imp. & p. p. {Bewildered}; p. pr. & vb. n. {Bewildering}.] [Pref. be + wilder.] To lead into perplexity or confusion, as for lack of a plain path; to perplex with mazes; or in general, to perplex or confuse greatly. [1913… … The Collaborative International Dictionary of English
bewilder — index confound, discompose, disorganize, disorient, disturb, embarrass, misguide, muddle, obfuscate … Law dictionary
bewilder — (v.) 1680s, from BE (Cf. be ) thoroughly + archaic wilder lead astray, lure into the wilds, probably a back formation of WILDERNESS (Cf. wilderness). An earlier word with the same sense was bewhape (early 14c.). Related: BEWILDERED (Cf.… … Etymology dictionary
bewilder — mystify, perplex, distract, *puzzle, confound, nonplus, dumbfound Analogous words: *confuse, addle, fuddle, muddle: fluster, flurry, perturb, agitate, upset (see DISCOMPOSE): baffle, foil (see FRUSTRATE) … New Dictionary of Synonyms
bewilder — [v] confuse addle, baffle, ball up*, befuddle, bemuse, confound, daze, disconcert, distract, floor*, fluster, mess with one’s head*, mix up, muddle, mystify, perplex, puzzle, rattle, snow*, stump, stupefy, throw, upset; concepts 14,42 Ant. clear… … New thesaurus
bewilder — ► VERB ▪ perplex or confuse. DERIVATIVES bewildering adjective bewilderment noun. ORIGIN from obsolete wilder «lead or go astray» … English terms dictionary
bewilder — [bē wil′dər, biwil′dər] vt. [ BE + WILDER] 1. to confuse hopelessly, as by something complicated or involved; befuddle; puzzle 2. Archaic to cause to be lost, as in a wilderness SYN. PUZZLE bewilderingly adv … English World dictionary
bewilder — verb a) To confuse, puzzle or befuddle someone, especially with many different things. All the different possible options may bewilder us. b) To disorientate someone. Dont push me into that maze and bewilder me … Wiktionary
bewilder — See puzzle, perplex, bewilder. See puzzle, perplex, bewilder … Dictionary of problem words and expressions
bewilder — UK [bɪˈwɪldə(r)] / US [bɪˈwɪldər] verb [transitive] Word forms bewilder : present tense I/you/we/they bewilder he/she/it bewilders present participle bewildering past tense bewildered past participle bewildered to make someone feel confused Too… … English dictionary
bewilder — /bi wil deuhr/, v.t. to confuse or puzzle completely; perplex: These shifting attitudes bewilder me. [1675 85; BE + WILDER (v.)] Syn. mystify, nonplus, confuse, daze, confound, stagger, muddle. * * * … Universalium
