1
as in to confuse
to make (something) unclear to the understanding
don't becloud the discussion by raising unrelated issues
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in to obscure
to make dark, dim, or indistinct
the smog from the city's steel mills was once so oppressive that it beclouded the local landscape even at noon
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of becloud
But instead of sounding the alarm, defendants went out of their way to becloud the emerging scientific consensus.
—
Edward Fitzpatrick, BostonGlobe.com, 7 Aug. 2019
His flacks and surrogates hand out scraps of information grudgingly, infrequently, and beclouded by fragrant eructations of doublespeak.
—Charles Seife, Slate Magazine, 1 Mar. 2017
Edward Fitzpatrick, BostonGlobe.com, 7 Aug. 2019
His flacks and surrogates hand out scraps of information grudgingly, infrequently, and beclouded by fragrant eructations of doublespeak.
—Charles Seife, Slate Magazine, 1 Mar. 2017
Recent Examples of Synonyms for becloud
Verb
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The California Department of Public Health is urging people to avoid mushroom foraging altogether this year because death cap mushrooms are easily confused with safe, edible varieties.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
8 Feb. 2026
-
Germany's exact medal count is a point of contention because Germany has not always competed in each Olympics as a unified country, which can lead to confusing medal counts.—
Aliza Chasan,
CBS News,
7 Feb. 2026
Verb
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The individual, their face covered in a ski mask, appears to fiddle with the camera with a gloved hand before turning away to look for something to obscure the lens.—
Anna Kaufman,
USA Today,
11 Feb. 2026
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But despite the new program’s promising rhetoric, the scientific framing of the announcement obscures a deeper policy problem.—
Washington Post,
Washington Post,
10 Feb. 2026
Verb
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Lawyers for the group contend that the city is willfully obfuscating to cover up its inadequate efforts to live up to its settlement.—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
16 Jan. 2026
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Instead, DeSantis unleashed a rambling recap of the past seven years, with plenty of unsourced statistics, claims of victory that aren’t supported by reality, and wording often designed to obfuscate the most controversial parts of his tenure.—
Orlando Sentinel Editorial Board,
The Orlando Sentinel,
14 Jan. 2026
Verb
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Hope is a dimming ember lighting our ever-darkening path.—
AJ Willingham,
AJC.com,
11 Feb. 2026
-
The sky has darkened to a deep, clear blue, although that slow, slow sunset still burns orange on the horizon, and lamps are now glowing around the lagoon, as if set for a candlelit dinner.—
Rick Jordan,
Travel + Leisure,
8 Feb. 2026
Verb
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Cancer had consumed her body; drugs clouded her mind.—
Allegra Goodman,
Literary Hub,
11 Feb. 2026
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Mostly clear skies early Tuesday morning will quickly cloud over, and high temperatures will be in the mid-30s.—
Matthew Villafane,
CBS News,
10 Feb. 2026
Verb
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With proper application, the blurring balm powder keeps makeup in place for hours on end with minimal touch-ups needed.—
Essence Wiley,
InStyle,
7 Feb. 2026
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As Hal witnesses crisis and inequality firsthand, the line between observing and acting begins to blur.—
Matt Grobar,
Deadline,
6 Feb. 2026
Verb
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And Hanceville’s fate is as murky as the fog that pours in at night, blotting out buildings and blackening the road ahead.—
Rob Picheta,
CNN Money,
7 Feb. 2026
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These tungsten atoms would then condense on the slightly cooler inside of the glass bulb, blackening it and dimming the light over time.—
Natalia Sánchez Loayza,
Scientific American,
5 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Becloud.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/becloud. Accessed 14 Feb. 2026.
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