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mess
[ mes ]
noun
- a dirty, untidy, or disordered condition:
The room was in a mess.
Antonyms:
- a person or thing that is dirty, untidy, or disordered.
- a state of embarrassing confusion:
My affairs are in a mess.
Synonyms: , , , , ,
- an unpleasant or difficult situation:
She got into a mess driving without a license.
Synonyms: , ,
- a dirty or untidy mass, litter, or jumble:
a mess of papers.
- a group regularly taking their meals together.
- the meal so taken.
- Naval. messroom ( def ).
- a quantity of food sufficient for a dish or a single occasion:
to pick a mess of sweet corn for dinner.
- a sloppy or unappetizing preparation of food.
- a dish or quantity of soft or liquid food:
to cook up a nice mess of pottage.
- a person whose life or affairs are in a state of confusion, especially a person with a confused or disorganized moral or psychological outlook.
verb (used with object)
- to make dirty or untidy (often followed by up ):
Don't mess the room.
- to make a mess or muddle of (affairs, responsibilities, etc.) (often followed by up ):
They messed the deal.
Synonyms: ,
Antonyms: , ,
- to supply with meals, as military personnel.
- to treat roughly; beat up (usually followed by up ):
The gang messed him up.
verb (used without object)
- to eat in company, especially as a member of a mess.
- to make a dirty or untidy mess.
verb phrase
- to make dirty, untidy, or disordered.
- to perform poorly; bungle:
She messed up on the final exam.
- Informal. to busy oneself without purpose or plan; work aimlessly or halfheartedly; putter.
- Informal. to waste time; loaf.
- Informal. to meddle or interfere.
- Informal. to involve or associate oneself, especially for immoral or unethical purposes:
His wife accused him of messing around with gamblers.
- Slang. to trifle sexually; philander.
- to intervene officiously; meddle:
You'll get no thanks for messing in the affairs of others.
mess
/ ɛ /
noun
- a state of confusion or untidiness, esp if dirty or unpleasant
the house was in a mess
- a chaotic or troublesome state of affairs; muddle
his life was a mess
- informal.a dirty or untidy person or thing
- archaic.a portion of food, esp soft or semiliquid food
- a place where service personnel eat or take recreation
an officers' mess
- a group of people, usually servicemen, who eat together
- the meal so taken
- mess of pottagea material gain involving the sacrifice of a higher value
verb
- troften foll byup to muddle or dirty
- intr to make a mess
- introften foll bywith to interfere; meddle
- intr; often foll by with or together military to group together, esp for eating
Word History and Origins
Origin of mess1
Word History and Origins
Origin of mess1
Idioms and Phrases
- get into trouble (a mess)
- make a hash (mess) of
Example Sentences
Leicester's relegation was confirmed by their defeat against Liverpool and, from top to bottom, the club is in a mess.
When it comes to playing video games, don’t mess with the esports trio from Franklin High known for their expertise in the “Rocket League,” which is a video game that mixes soccer with bumper cars.
Lapwood says the artists are all connected by an enthusiasm for "messing around" with music, citing Sumino's viral video of the "seven degrees of Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star".
“If you mess up, there’s not going to be a pile of cards on your dressing room station saying, ‘Your foot was not pointed when it was supposed to be.’
“Perhaps in my self centered mess I felt it was my fault that I showed him those dirty magazines when he was 6 and then we acted out what we saw.”
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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.
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