discombobulated

adjective

dis·​com·​bob·​u·​lat·​ed ˌdis-kəm-ˈbä-b(y)ə-ˌlā-təd How to pronounce discombobulated (audio)
Synonyms of discombobulated
informal
: characterized by confusion or disorder
He was discombobulated, utterly confused as to what had happened.—Michael Hall
But you've also probably noticed that oversleeping can make you feel discombobulated …—Christopher Bergland
Detroit's offensive line was a discombobulated mess of failing health and poor performance last year …—Nate Atkins
see also discombobulate

Examples of discombobulated in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
The Commanders entered on a five-game losing streak with a backup QB and a discombobulated defense. — Miami Herald, 16 Nov. 2025 The first was the performance itself — a discombobulated mess, a good hockey team making October mistakes in mid-March. — Sean Keeler, Denver Post, 17 Mar. 2026 The Spurs continued to look discombobulated on offense after falling behind. — Rohan Nadkarni, NBC news, 11 June 2026 From tipoff, the Cyclones’ defense had KU’s offense looking discombobulated. — Shreyas Laddha, Kansas City Star, 14 Feb. 2026 See All Example Sentences for discombobulated

Word History

First Known Use

1863, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of discombobulated was in 1863

Rhymes for discombobulated

See All Rhymes for discombobulated

Browse Nearby Words

discombobulate
discombobulated
Discomedusae
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Discombobulated.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/discombobulated. Accessed 10 Jul. 2026.

Copy Citation

More from Merriam-Webster on discombobulated

Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for discombobulated

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

Is that lie 'bald-faced' or 'bold-faced'?

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?

Commonly Misspelled Words

How to Use Em Dashes (—), En Dashes (–) , and Hyphens (-)
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

The Longest Long Words List

One-Word Oxymorons: Bittersweet, Spendthrift, and More

Ten Words Ending with a Silent ‘T’

The Words of the Week - Jul 10
See More

Popular

See More

Is that lie 'bald-faced' or 'bold-faced'?

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

The Longest Long Words List
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
hangman letters and game
Hangman Lightning Round Figure out which word fits in the blanks.
See All