confusion

con·fu·sion  (kn-fyzhn)

n.

1.

a. The act of confusing or the state of being confused: Backstage confusion made the rehearsal difficult.

b. An instance of being confused: "After his awakening to Chicano identity, he briefly mastered his inner confusions and found an articulate voice" (David C. Unger).

2. Psychology Impaired orientation with respect to time, place, or person; a disturbed mental state.

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con·fusion·al adj.

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confusion [kənˈfjuːʒən]

n

1. the act of confusing or the state of being confused

2. disorder; jumble

3. bewilderment; perplexity

4. lack of clarity; indistinctness

5. embarrassment; abashment

confusional  adj

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Confusion a confused collection or assemblage. See also chaos, clutter.

Examples: confusion of blocks of stone; of piled blocks, 1835; of persons, 1791.

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Confusion 

at loose ends Unsettled, undecided, lacking direction or goal; uncommitted to one’s present position and uncertain of one’s future status. A loose end is anything that is left hanging or not properly attached, as a piece of fabric or a seemingly superfluous detail. A person is “at loose ends” when his life lacks coherence or a sense of direction as exemplified in the following fragment quoted in Webster’s Third:

… feeling himself at loose ends—no job, no immediate prospects. (Dixon Wecter)

See also tie up the loose ends, COMPLETION.

at sea Confused, perplexed; without direction, design, or stability; in a state of uncertainty. Figurative use of this expression dates from the mid-18th century and is based on an analogy to a ship lost at sea, having no bearings and out of sight of land. At sea can refer to a person or state of affairs. All adrift is an analogous nautical expression with a similar figurative meaning ‘aimless, confused.’

knock for a loop To disorient someone by saying or doing something shocking or unexpected; to strike a blow and cause one to lose balance and fall. The loop in this modern slang expression derives from the aeronautical term for the mid-air maneuver of an airplane. To knock someone for a loop is to hit that person hard enough to make him do a somersault. The feeling of dizziness and disorientation is carried over into the more common figurative use.

That little charade of hers had knocked him for a loop. (D. Ramsey, Deadly Discretion, 1973)

Also current is throw for a loop.

I was really confused. That memorandum threw me for a loop. (E. Ambler, Intercom Conspiracy, 1969)

knock galley-west See COMBAT.

lose one’s bearings To become lost; to lose all sense of direction; to become hopelessly disoriented, confused, or bewildered. In this expression, bearings carries the literal meaning of reference points or directions in relation to one’s position; thus, the term’s use to describe a person who is lost or disoriented.

not know if one is afoot or on horseback So completely confused as to not know what one is doing, thoroughly befuddled or mixed-up; not to know whether one is coming or going. This self-evident American colloquialism dates from the late 19th century.

“Fay Daniels!” gasps the girl, which don’t know if she’s afoot or horseback—and neither did I. (Collier’s, October, 1927)

not to know if one is coming or going Not to know what one is doing; extremely confused or mixed-up; not to know which end is up; ignorant, stupid.

There’s nobody at the Town Hall could take it on. Town Clerk doesn’t know whether he’s coming or going. (J. B. Priestley, Fest. Frabridge, 1951)

Use of the phrase dates from at least 1924.

not to know which end is up See IGNORANCE.

not to make head nor tail of See make head or tail of, DIFFERENTIATION.

slaphappy See FATUOUSNESS.

Thesaurus

Noun	1.	confusion - disorder resulting from a failure to behave predictably; "the army retreated in confusion" disorder - a disturbance of the peace or of public order demoralisation, demoralization - a state of disorder and confusion; "his inconsistency resulted in the demoralization of his staff" bluster - noisy confusion and turbulence; "he was awakened by the bluster of their preparations" bedlam, chaos, pandemonium, topsy-turvydom, topsy-turvyness - a state of extreme confusion and disorder hugger-mugger - a state of confusion; "he engaged in the hugger-mugger of international finance" schemozzle, shemozzle - (Yiddish) a confused situation or affair; a mess
	2.	confusion - a mental state characterized by a lack of clear and orderly thought and behavior; "a confusion of impressions" confusedness, disarray, mental confusion, muddiness cognitive state, state of mind - the state of a person's cognitive processes disorientation - confusion (usually transient) about where you are and how to proceed; uncertainty as to direction; "his disorientation was the result of inattention" distraction - mental turmoil; "he drives me to distraction" daze, haze, fog - confusion characterized by lack of clarity half-cock - confusion resulting from lack of preparation jamais vu - the experience of being unfamiliar with a person or situation that is actually very familiar; associated with certain types of epilepsy bafflement, befuddlement, bemusement, bewilderment, mystification, obfuscation, puzzlement - confusion resulting from failure to understand perplexity - trouble or confusion resulting from complexity
	3.	confusion - a feeling of embarrassment that leaves you confused discombobulation embarrassment - the shame you feel when your inadequacy or guilt is made public
	4.	confusion - an act causing a disorderly combination of elements with identities lost and distinctions blended; "the confusion of tongues at the Tower of Babel" compounding, combining, combination - the act of combining things to form a new whole babel - a confusion of voices and other sounds
	5.	confusion - a mistake that results from taking one thing to be another; "he changed his name in order to avoid confusion with the notorious outlaw" mix-up error, fault, mistake - a wrong action attributable to bad judgment or ignorance or inattention; "he made a bad mistake"; "she was quick to point out my errors"; "I could understand his English in spite of his grammatical faults"

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confusion

noun

1. bewilderment, doubt, uncertainty, puzzlement, perplexity, mystification, bafflement, perturbation Omissions in my recent article may have caused some confusion.
bewilderment solution, explanation, enlightenment, clarification

2. disorder, chaos, turmoil, upheaval, muddle, bustle, shambles, disarray, commotion, disorganization, disarrangement The rebel leader seems to have escaped in the confusion.
disorder order, organization, arrangement, neatness, tidiness

3. bewilderment, puzzlement, perplexity, bafflement, mystification, perturbation I left his office in a state of confusion.

Quotations
"Confusion is a word we have invented for an order which is not understood" [Henry Miller Tropic of Capricorn]
"with ruin upon ruin, rout on rout,"
"Confusion worse confounded" [John Milton Paradise Lost]

Translations

confusion [kənˈfjuːʒən] N

1. (= disorder) → desorden m
to be in confusion → estar en desorden
to retire in confusion → retirarse en desorden

2. (= perplexity) → confusión f, desorientación f
people were in a state of confusion → la gente estaba desorientada

3. (= commotion) → confusión f
in all the confusion I forgot it → lo olvidé en medio de tanta confusión
I heard a confusion of voices → oí unas voces confusas

4. (= embarrassment) to be covered in confusion → estar avergonzado

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confusion [kənˈfjuːʒ^ən] n

(= uncertainty) → confusion f

(= chaos) → confusion f

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confusion

n

(= disorder) → Durcheinander nt, → Wirrwarr m, → Unordnung f; (= jumble) → Wirrwarr m; to be in confusion → in Unordnung sein, durcheinander sein; scenes of confusion → allgemeines or wildes Durcheinander; to retreat in confusion (Mil) → einen ungeordneten Rückzug antreten; to throw everything into confusion → alles durcheinanderbringen; in the confusion of the battle → im Durcheinander der Schlacht; to run about in confusion → wild durcheinanderlaufen

(= perplexity) → Verwirrung f, → Unklarheit f; (= mental confusion, after drugs, blow on head etc) → Verwirrtheit f; (through old age etc) → Wirrheit f; in the confusion of the moment → im Eifer des Gefechts

(= embarrassment) → Verlegenheit f; (at being found out) → Betroffenheit f; to be covered in confusion → vor Verlegenheit erröten

(= mixing up) → Verwechslung f

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confusion [kənˈfjuːʒ/ən] n → confusione f

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confusion → ارتباك, تشوش nepořádek, záměna forvirring, virvar Durcheinander, Verwechslung ανακατωσούρα, σύγχυση confusión, enredo sekaannus, sotku confusion, pagaille pometnja, zbrka confusione, disordine 混乱状態, 混同 뒤죽박죽, 혼란 verwarring forvirring, rot dezorientacja, zamieszanie confusão, desordem путаница, смятение förvirring, röra ความไม่เป็นระเบียบ, ความสับสน kargaşa, karışıklık sự nhầm lẫn, tình trạng lộn xộn 困惑, 混淆