1
as in to confuse
to make (something) unclear to the understanding
the professor's convoluted explanation only befogged the textbook's presentation of this scientific principle
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in to obscure
to make dark, dim, or indistinct
the morning murk befogged our view of the harbor
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in to bewilder
to throw into a state of mental uncertainty
completely befogged by the sudden change of subject
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of befog
But the Taycan's launch control hits harder than the Model S's, smacking us with 1.3 g's of initial acceleration long enough to befog our noggin.
—
Dave Vanderwerp, Car and Driver, 7 Feb. 2020
This is the point where accidentally interacting with passerby distracted by their smartphones, their attention equally befogged by another kind of augmented reality, could result in a very bad ending.
—Matt Peckham, Time, 23 June 2017
The detective blames Nichols, the self-aggrandizing adviser who convinced the Cabazons to build a casino, for conjuring the intrigue that continued to befog the case long after his death.
—Andrew Rice, WIRED, 4 Feb. 2011
Dave Vanderwerp, Car and Driver, 7 Feb. 2020
This is the point where accidentally interacting with passerby distracted by their smartphones, their attention equally befogged by another kind of augmented reality, could result in a very bad ending.
—Matt Peckham, Time, 23 June 2017
The detective blames Nichols, the self-aggrandizing adviser who convinced the Cabazons to build a casino, for conjuring the intrigue that continued to befog the case long after his death.
—Andrew Rice, WIRED, 4 Feb. 2011
Recent Examples of Synonyms for befog
Verb
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Baun’s ability to play on the line of scrimmage allowed defensive coordinator Vic Fangio to shift the front with Baun moving from off-ball to edge or vice versa right before the snap, confusing the blocking assignments for the offense.—
Ted Nguyen,
New York Times,
23 July 2025
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By 1915, scientists unearthed 2 million bones of large animals from La Brea, and a pattern emerged that both excited and confused them: too many predators.—
Ian Rose,
JSTOR Daily,
23 July 2025
Verb
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By the time of totality at 3:20 p.m., dense clouds obscured the view, with an eerie darkness and a golden horizon.—
Jamie Carter,
Forbes.com,
23 July 2025
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He was either shrouded in haze (the gasps of the fog machine eventually became indistinguishable from the vapor being collectively exhaled by the crowd) or obscured by low-angle backlighting.—
Amanda Petrusich,
New Yorker,
21 July 2025
Verb
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As Epstein continues to dog his presidency, Trump says he’s bewildered by the attention.—
Laura Trujillo,
USA Today,
25 July 2025
-
Her camera is so incisive, always peeling back the veneers of polite conversation to reveal the messy, often contradictory emotions that drive us, that bewilder us.—
Travis Bean,
Forbes.com,
23 July 2025
Verb
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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
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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
Verb
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But perceptions of where the economy is heading have darkened.—
Martha McHardy,
MSNBC Newsweek,
24 July 2025
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Just after sunset, as the sky begins to darken, a 2%-lit waxing crescent moon will appear just hours after being in its invisible new phase.—
Jamie Carter,
Forbes.com,
23 July 2025
Verb
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At the time, I was perplexed and questioned if this was necessary.—
Susan Horava,
Health,
24 June 2025
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Ultimately, the remaining Islanders dumped Jeremiah and Hannah, a controversial move that left viewers at home perplexed as to why this decision was made.—
Armando Tinoco,
Deadline,
23 June 2025
Verb
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Leagues often obfuscate finances during labor negotiations, but, in the case of the W.N.B.A., the numbers are particularly difficult to understand.—
Louisa Thomas,
New Yorker,
27 July 2025
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Update, April 15, 2025: This story, originally published April 13, has now been updated with details of how real-time email validation helps attackers, along with further information from Trustwave detailing how attackers obfuscate their 2FA bypass phishing threats.—
Davey Winder,
Forbes.com,
15 Apr. 2025
Verb
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Tweaked as recently as 1992, the house deliberately blurs boundaries between interior and exterior, public and private, finished and unfinished.—
David Hochman,
Forbes.com,
26 July 2025
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AirPods blur the line between presence and absence, reducing opportunities for mindfulness.—
MSNBC Newsweek,
MSNBC Newsweek,
24 July 2025
Cite this Entry
“Befog.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/befog. Accessed 4 Aug. 2025.
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