addled 1 of 2

adjective

ˈa-dᵊld How to pronounce addled (audio)
Definition of addlednext
1
as in rotten
having undergone organic breakdown addled eggs found on a long abandoned hen's nest

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in dazed
suffering from mental confusion one of the more addled audience members confused Ghana with Guyana

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

addled

2 of 2

verb

past tense of addle
as in baffled
to throw into a state of mental uncertainty after slipping on the ice, Bethany was so addled that she left her groceries where they'd fallen

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

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.
Recent Examples of addled
Adjective
Instead, director Weston Scott’s concept deepens the text, making the addled, voice-hearing brain that could commit or attempt assassination all the more real and dangerous. — Theater Critic, San Francisco Chronicle, 29 Mar. 2026 The bottles of funky unfiltered wine that line the shelves of Apiri Greek Eatery in hip, central Heraklion—Crete’s largest city with a leafy, Venetian history-addled center—are proof. — Shannon McMahon, Condé Nast Traveler, 1 July 2026
Verb
One is addled by paranoia and extremism, the other knows only heartless corporate speak. — Jake Coyle, Boston Herald, 24 Oct. 2025 Sharif, now an old man (played by Mohammad Bakri), lives with them, his memory addled yet returning obsessively to the loss of his homeland. — Justin Chang, New Yorker, 14 Jan. 2026 See All Example Sentences for addled
Recent Examples of Synonyms for addled
  1. rotten
  2. dazed
  3. baffled
  4. spoiled
  5. bewildered
  6. confused
  7. decomposed
  8. distracted
Adjective
  • But Reddick shouldn’t yet be counted out because his recent downturn is more due to rotten luck than substandard performance.
    — Jess Bryant, New York Times, 4 July 2026
  • Unashamed about its unoriginality, the movie debuted in May last year to a 'rotten' rating by critics and audiences alike on review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes.
    — Caroline Reid, Forbes.com, 30 June 2026
Definition of rotten
Adjective
  • Like Mahrez, Austria’s Marcel Sabitzer seemed slightly dazed following the topsy-turvy turn of events.
    — Pete Grathoff, Kansas City Star, 28 June 2026
  • Humans of all ages, in fact, stare dazed into glowing screens.
    — Louis Peitzman, Vulture, 19 June 2026
Definition of dazed
Verb
  • Pz’ spends much of his proper debut, No Turning Back, equally baffled by his good fortune and ready to fasten it to his side with a Gucci strap before anyone else can take it.
    — Dylan Green, Pitchfork, 3 July 2026
  • His focus on the voting bill, instead of signing one that tackles a top issue for voters, has left some GOP strategists baffled.
    — David Hickey, NBC news, 2 July 2026
Definition of baffled
Adjective
  • Lineage officials said that their top priority as of Monday night was addressing the stench permeating over Boyle Heights due to the spoiled food.
    — Austin Turner, CBS News, 29 June 2026
  • Blyth was nominated in the supporting role as Mildred's spoiled daughter, Veda, who seduces her mother's second husband (Zachary Scott), then riddles him with bullets in a jealous rage.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 26 June 2026
Definition of spoiled
Adjective
  • Fido was fine, if a little bewildered, and in February 1973, the board lifted its book bans.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 25 June 2026
  • At the risk of sounding less like a columnist and more like a bewildered bystander … what the heck happened?
    — Denise Crosby, Chicago Tribune, 14 June 2026
Definition of bewildered
Verb
  • Narcissism should never be confused with the healthy form of philautia, a unique Greek philosophy of self-love.
    — Gregory Stebbins, Forbes.com, 30 June 2026
  • One workshop is a Mindful Archery class, not to be confused with her other course Meditative Archery, which involves Jungian journaling; and there’s a one-on-one archery session with spiritual guidance.
    — Deborah Vankin, Los Angeles Times, 30 June 2026
Definition of confused
Adjective
  • At a time when the Earth was bare, when there were no vertebrates, no trees, no leaves, no flowering plants, and no plants with seeds, millipedes were feeding on decaying mosses, decomposed slime, and primordial gunk.
    — Maria Mocerino, Interesting Engineering, 13 June 2026
  • Inspectors also found a decomposed rat in the basement.
    — Mamie Bah, CBS News, 15 May 2026
Definition of decomposed
Adjective
  • Some big rubber balls had been tossed in to keep them distracted.
    — Burkhard Bilger, New Yorker, 29 June 2026
  • The problem, Larson said, is that Congress was highly distracted at the time with passing the Affordable Care Act, known as Obamacare.
    — Christopher Keating, Hartford Courant, 28 June 2026
Definition of distracted

Browse Nearby Words

addle
addled
addlepated
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Addled.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/addled. Accessed 7 Jul. 2026.

Copy Citation

More from Merriam-Webster on addled

Nglish: Translation of addled for Spanish Speakers

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’

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World
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