What does "confound" mean?
A confounding variable.
Confound
/kənˈfaʊnd/ noun, verb
noun, verb ·Common ·Middle school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: A confounding variable.
- Grammar: confound is listed as noun, verb.
- Nearest alternatives: abash, accurse, addle, adulterate.
- Useful contrasts: isolated teaching, accuracy, clarify.
- Usage evidence: When in doubt tell the truth. It will confound your enemies and astound your friends.
How to use "confound"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "confound" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "confound" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "confound" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "confound" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "confound" is acting as noun, verb in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "abash" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
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Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "confound", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 A confounding variable.
"The participants certainly differ in how their practice is distributed (1, 2, or 3 days), but they also differ in how much total practice they get (3, 6, or 9 hours). This is a perfect example of a confound—it is impossible to tell if the results are due to one factor (distribution of practice) or the other (total practice hours); the two factors covary perfectly."
Verb
- 1 To perplex or puzzle.
"And the brother of Jared being a large and mighty man, and a man highly favored of the Lord, Jared, his brother, said unto him: Cry unto the Lord, that he will not confound us that we may not understand our words."
- 2 mistake one thing for another wordnet
- 3 To stun or amaze.
- 4 be confusing or perplexing to; cause to be unable to think clearly wordnet
- 5 To fail to see the difference; to mix up; to confuse right and wrong.
"1651 (Latin edition 1642), Thomas Hobbes, De Cive (Latin title) Philosophicall Rudiments Concerning Government and Society (English), Hey who lesse seriously consider the force of words, doe sometimes confound Law with Counsell, sometimes with Covenant, sometimes with Right. They confound Law with Counsell, who think, that it is the duty of Monarchs not onely to give ear to their Counsellours, but also to obey them, as though it were in vaine to take Counsell, unlesse it were also followed."
Show 6 more definitions
- 6 To make something worse. proscribed, sometimes
"Don't confound the situation by yelling."
- 7 To combine in a confused fashion; to mingle so as to make the parts indistinguishable.
"There the freſh and ſalt water would meete and be confounded together, […]"
- 8 To cause to be ashamed; to abash.
"His actions confounded the skeptics."
- 9 To defeat, to frustrate, to thwart.
"But God hath choſen the fooliſh things of the woꝛld, to confound the wiſe: and God hath choſen the weake things of the woꝛld, to confound the things which are mighty:"
- 10 To damn (a mild oath). dated
"Confound you!"
- 11 To destroy, ruin, or devastate; to bring to ruination. archaic
"To mortal men, he with his horrid crew / Lay vanquiſht, rowling in the fiery Gulfe / Confounded though immortal: But his doom[…]"
Example
"When in doubt tell the truth. It will confound your enemies and astound your friends."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "confound"?
Common synonyms include: abash, accurse, addle, adulterate, alloy, amaze.
How do you use "confound" in a sentence?
When in doubt tell the truth. It will confound your enemies and astound your friends.
How do you pronounce "confound"?
Pronounced /kənˈfaʊnd/.
Etymology
From Middle English confounden (“destroy, ruin, perplex”), from Anglo-Norman cunfundre and Old French confondre, from Latin cōnfundō (“to mingle, mix together”). Related to found (“to melt (metals in a foundry)”) (but not to found (“to start”), nor to find) and to fusion.