be·muse

(bĭ-myo͞oz′)

tr.v. be·mused, be·mus·ing, be·mus·es

1. To cause to be bewildered; confuse.

2. To occupy the attention of; absorb or engross: The book bemused him for days.

3. Usage Problem To cause to be mildly or wryly amused: "Unlike William McKinley, whose priggishness bemused him, Roosevelt had no compunctions about smoking cigars in public" (Joseph Conlin).

be·mus′ed·ly (-myo͞o′zĭd-lē) adv.

be·muse′ment n.

Usage Note: The word bemused is sometimes used to mean "amused, especially when finding something wryly funny," as in The stream of jokes from the comedian left the audience bemused, with some breaking out into guffaws. Most of the Usage Panel does not like this usage, with 78 percent rejecting this sentence in our 2005 survey. By contrast, 84 percent accepted a sentence in which bemused means "confused."

American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:

Noun

bemusement - confusion resulting from failure to understand

bafflement, befuddlement, bewilderment, mystification, obfuscation, puzzlement

confusedness, disarray, mental confusion, muddiness, confusion - a mental state characterized by a lack of clear and orderly thought and behavior; "a confusion of impressions"

bemusement

noun puzzlement, surprise, confusion, uncertainty, amazement, questioning, bewilderment, perplexity, bafflement, mystification, stupefaction, befuddlement A look of bemusement mixed with alarm spread across their faces.

Collins Thesaurus of the English Language – Complete and Unabridged 2nd Edition. 2002 © HarperCollins Publishers 1995, 2002

bemusement

noun

The condition of being so lost in solitary thought as to be unaware of one's surroundings:

absent-mindedness, abstraction, brown study, daydreaming, muse, reverie, study, trance.

Translations

absorbement

bemusement

[bɪˈmjuːzmənt] n (= puzzlement) → perplexité f

Collins English/French Electronic Resource. © HarperCollins Publishers 2005

Mentioned in

References in periodicals archive

The cause of my current bemusement is, of course, Brexit, and in particular the Liberal Democratic Party, formerly the Social and Liberal Democrats - formed from the Liberal Party and members of the Social Democratic Party in 1988.

Clearly not democrats!

He said: "There has been utter dismay and bemusement following the announcement by EnQuest to reduce the workforce by a quarter.

Oil firm to axe 80 jobs at terminal

While most Pakistanis were calm and looked at the Indian antics with bemusement, some patriotic citizens went overboard in taking India to task.

War on social media

So it was with some bemusement that I noticed the ever-offended want the word 'cyclist' changed because it dehumanises them.

Cyclist signs need to be rewritten! Get in touch - tell us what you think Email: letters@birminghammail.co.uk Twitter: @birminghammail Facebook: facebook.com/birminghammail Post: Birmingham Mail, 60 Church Street, Birmingham B3 2DJ

Raphael Varane looked absolutely baffled by Umtiti's decision, while Benjamin Pavard also looked on in bemusement. Brilliant.

Raphael Varane's brilliant reaction to Samuel Umtiti's handball sums up just how ridiculous the decision was; The Real Madrid centre-back couldn't believe what the Barcelona defender decided to do in the box

Camilla and Kate shared a look of bemusement and even Harry and Meghan grinned after the speech went past five minutes.

Bishop's surprise sermon

My 12-year-old daughter has grown up with high definition, incredible gameplay - she looked on in bemusement at the pinging sound effects and shocking graphics.

Will you still need mewhen I'm C64? Console revives Commodore's '80s hits. But are they best forgotten?

Bale was polite when asked about United's interest, but the faint look of bemusement said it all.

GARETH BALE did not set []

Among the hoofers is Simon, whose passion for dancing means he needs a lot of clean shirts, much to the bemusement of his mum; she has a hard time getting make-up off the garments.

Swept off their feet for love

In fact I've rarely felt anything other than bemusement at how referees allow him to get away with his acts of blatant deceit.

I'VE rarely felt the urge [...]

Lovebirds Simon and Rachelle Christie-Irwin snubbed a luxury holiday in Cuba for the 'bemusement park' in Westonsuper-Mare, Bristol.

Cuba honeymoon? Give us Dismaland

Ian Fletcher (Hugh Bonneville, above) looks on with bemusement as his inept colleagues are promoted.

3TO SEE; THURSDAY May 14