Nominal Forms
Infinitive: to muddle sb up
Participle: muddled sb up
Gerund: muddling sb up
Cognates
-
Indicative
Present
| I | muddle sb up |
| you | muddle sb up |
| he;she;it | muddles sb up |
| we | muddle sb up |
| you | muddle sb up |
| they | muddle sb up |
Perfect
| I | have muddled sb up |
| you | have muddled sb up |
| he;she;it | has muddled sb up |
| we | have muddled sb up |
| you | have muddled sb up |
| they | have muddled sb up |
Past
| I | muddled sb up |
| you | muddled sb up |
| he;she;it | muddled sb up |
| we | muddled sb up |
| you | muddled sb up |
| they | muddled sb up |
Pluperfect
| I | had muddled sb up |
| you | had muddled sb up |
| he;she;it | had muddled sb up |
| we | had muddled sb up |
| you | had muddled sb up |
| they | had muddled sb up |
Future
| I | will muddle sb up |
| you | will muddle sb up |
| he;she;it | will muddle sb up |
| we | will muddle sb up |
| you | will muddle sb up |
| they | will muddle sb up |
Future Perfect
| I | will have muddled sb up |
| you | will have muddled sb up |
| he;she;it | will have muddled sb up |
| we | will have muddled sb up |
| you | will have muddled sb up |
| they | will have muddled sb up |
Subjunctive
Present
| I | muddle sb up |
| you | muddle sb up |
| he;she;it | muddle sb up |
| we | muddle sb up |
| you | muddle sb up |
| they | muddle sb up |
Perfect
| I | have muddled sb up |
| you | have muddled sb up |
| he;she;it | have muddled sb up |
| we | have muddled sb up |
| you | have muddled sb up |
| they | have muddled sb up |
Imperfect
| I | muddled sb up |
| you | muddled sb up |
| he;she;it | muddled sb up |
| we | muddled sb up |
| you | muddled sb up |
| they | muddled sb up |
Pluperfect
| I | had muddled sb up |
| you | had muddled sb up |
| he;she;it | had muddled sb up |
| we | had muddled sb up |
| you | had muddled sb up |
| they | had muddled sb up |
Conditional
Present
| I | would muddle sb up |
| you | would muddle sb up |
| he;she;it | would muddle sb up |
| we | would muddle sb up |
| you | would muddle sb up |
| they | would muddle sb up |
Perfect
| I | would have muddled sb up |
| you | would have muddled sb up |
| he;she;it | would have muddled sb up |
| we | would have muddled sb up |
| you | would have muddled sb up |
| they | would have muddled sb up |
Imperative
| you | muddle sb up |
| we | Let's muddle sb up |
| you | muddle sb up |
Verbs conjugated like 'muddle'
abacinate,
abalienate,
abase,
abate,
abbreviate,
abdicate,
abduce,
aberrate,
aberuncate,
abirritate,
abjudge,
abjudicate,
abjugate,
abjure,
ablactate,
ablaqueate,
able,
ablegate,
abligate,
abnegate, etc. (List truncated at 20 verbs)
Verbs similar to 'muddle'
buddle,
cuddle,
fuddle,
guddle,
huddle,
maddle,
meddle,
middle,
nuddle,
puddle,
Synonyms & Antonyms
Synonyms
- bungle
- botch, stumble, fumble, bumble
- confuse
- bewilder, fluster, addle, befuddle, disturb, perturb, ruffle
- disorder
- clutter, disarrange, jumble, snarl, entangle, misarrange, derange, mix
Antonyms
- disorder
- order, method, system, regularity
Additional Information
Etymology
1. 1596, perhaps freq. of mud (q.v.), or from Du. moddelen "to make (water) muddy," from the same P.Gmc. source. Sense of "make confused" first recorded 1687.
2. From Middle English modelen (attested in present participle modeland (“wallowing”)), from Middle Dutch moddelen (“to make muddy”), from modde, mod (“mud”) (Modern Dutch modder). By surface analysis, mud + -le. Compare German Kuddelmuddel.
Sample Sentences
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Young children tend to muddle their words.
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I will not , to please hostile critics , muddle the argument by making it one of recondite learning , in which neither I nor my readers are strong . I try to lay before the reader reasons from which he can judge for himself [1847, Francis William Newman, A History of the Hebrew Monarchy:]
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He muddled the mint sprigs in the bottom of the glass.
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c. 1721-1722, Jonathan Swift, The Progress of Marriage
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Young ducklings foster'd by a hen;
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But, when let out, they run and muddle
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He did ill to Muddle the Water. [1692, Roger L’Estrange, “ (please specify the fable number.) (please specify the name of the fable.)”, in Fables, of Æsop and Other Eminent Mythologists: […], London: […] R[ichard] Sare, […], →OCLC:]
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Their old master Epicurus seems to have had his brains so muddled and confounded with them, that he scarce ever kept in the right way. [1692, Richard Bentley, [A Confutation of Atheism] (please specify the sermon), London: [Thomas Parkhurst; Henry Mortlock], published 1692–1693:]
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[…] I vvas for five Years often drunk, alvvays muddled, they carry'd me from Tavern to Tavern, to Alehouſes and Brandy Shops, and brought me acquainted vvith ſuch ſtrange Dogs! [1733, Humphry Polesworth [pseudonym; John Arbuthnot], Alexander Pope, compiler, “Law is a Bottomless Pit. Or, The History of John Bull. […]. The Second Part. Chapter VIII. A Continuation of the Conversation betwixt John Bull and His Wife.”, in Miscellanies, 2nd edition, volume II, London: […] Benjamin Motte, […], →OCLC, page 99:]
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They muddle it [money] away without method or object, and without having anything to show for it. [1821, William Hazlitt, On the Want of Money:]