confound

[ kon-found, kuhn-; kon-found ]

verb (used with object)

1. to perplex or amaze, especially by a sudden disturbance or surprise; bewilder; confuse:

   The complicated directions confounded him.

   Synonyms: nonplus, daze, dumbfound, astound

2. to throw into confusion or disorder:

   The revolution confounded the people.

3. to throw into increased confusion or disorder.
4. to treat or regard erroneously as identical; mix or associate by mistake:

   truth confounded with error.

5. to mingle so that the elements cannot be distinguished or separated.
6. to damn (used in mild imprecations):

   Confound it!

7. to contradict or refute:

   to confound their arguments.

8. to put to shame; abash.
9. Archaic.
   1. to defeat or overthrow.
   2. to bring to ruin or naught.
10. Obsolete. to spend uselessly; waste.

confound

/ kənˈfaʊnd /

verb

1. to astound or perplex; bewilder
2. to mix up; confuse
3. to treat mistakenly as similar to or identical with (one or more other things)
4. kɒnˈfaʊnd to curse or damn (usually as an expletive in the phrase confound it! )
5. to contradict or refute (an argument, etc)
6. to rout or defeat (an enemy)
7. obsolete.
   to waste

Derived Forms

• conˈfounder, noun
• conˈfoundable, adjective

Other Word Forms

• con·found·a·ble adjective
• con·found·er noun
• in·ter·con·found verb (used with object)
• pre·con·found verb (used with object)
• un·con·found verb (used with object)

Word History and Origins

Origin of confound¹

First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English conf(o)unden, from Anglo-French confoundre, from Latin confundere “to mix,” equivalent to con- con- + fundere “to pour”

Word History and Origins

Origin of confound¹

C13: from Old French confondre, from Latin confundere to mingle, pour together, from fundere to pour

Example Sentences

But again and again events pop up to complicate and confound any apparently linear path towards it.

From BBC

A bold Aries woman like Selena seemed to confound Abraham, with his work ethic and headstrong personality.

From Los Angeles Times

To welcome the appellation of "b***h" is confounding on the face of it, since it was by and large recognized as a profane term of abuse.

From Salon

He effectively used his splitter and confounded his opponents by throwing in an occasional curveball.

From Los Angeles Times

That one inexplicable blip at Twickenham will confound experts for the rest of time.

From BBC

Related Words

• amaze
• astonish
• astound
• baffle
• bewilder
• discombobulate
• dumbfound
• embarrass
• faze
• mystify
• perplex
• puzzle
• rattle
• startle
• surprise