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discombobulate

dis·com·bo·bulate

UK/ˌdɪs.kəmˈbɒb.jəˌleɪt/ US/ˌdɪskʌˈmbɔbjuleɪt/ uncommon

verb

1.
2.

be confusing or perplexing to; cause to be unable to think clearly

  • “These questions confuse even the experts”
  • “This question completely threw me”
  • “This question befuddled even the teacher”
Synonyms

Origin

Fanciful variant of discompose, discomfit, etc., originally discombobricate. The -bob- interfix may come from bobbery, meaning “commotion, noise”. First attested in 1834 in the United States.

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WordNet 2.1 (Princeton University). Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). CMU Pronouncing Dictionary. WordNet 2.1 Copyright Princeton University. All rights reserved. Wiktionary content is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike Licence.