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Synonyms

mishmash

American  
[mish-mahsh, -mash] / ˈmɪʃˌmɑʃ, -ˌmæʃ /
Also mishmosh

noun

  1. a confused mess; hodgepodge; jumble.

mishmash British  
/ ˈmɪʃˌmæʃ /

noun

  1. a confused collection or mixture; hotchpotch

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of mishmash

1425–75; late Middle English; gradational formation based on mash 1

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Sure, some he knew, but that book was Ghislaine Maxwell’s curation, a mishmash of people, many of whom she believed he should meet.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 20, 2026

This was a mishmash of ideas with no clear identification marks.

From BBC • Feb. 11, 2026

And on Thursday, he raised the possibility of a mixed Supreme Court decision resulting in “some kind of a mishmash of, ‘you can do this, you can’t do that.’”

From MarketWatch • Jan. 8, 2026

Saddled with a mishmash of Freddy’s-verse lore, clunky exposition and pancake-flat dialogue, the narrative becomes careless and convoluted.

From Los Angeles Times • Dec. 5, 2025

We eagerly dump their bags out on my bed, creating a mishmash of florals and polka dots and fluorescents.

From "Five Feet Apart" by Rachael Lippincott

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.