confound
verb
con·found
kən-ˈfau̇nd 
kän-
confounded; confounding; confounds
1
: to throw (a person) into confusion or perplexity
tactics to confound the enemy
2
3
: damn
4
a
: to fail to discern differences between : mix up
They implored Charles not to confound the innocent with the guilty …—
T. B. Macaulay
T. B. Macaulay
b
: to increase the confusion of
5
Synonyms
Examples of confound in a Sentence
The strategy confounded our opponents.
The murder case has confounded investigators.
The school's team confounded all predictions and won the game.
The success of the show confounded critics.
Recent Examples on the Web
Sacked 18 times this year, six came in the 49ers’ Week 2 loss at Minnesota, where the Vikings deployed a confounding defensive scheme.
—Cam Inman, The Mercury News, 16 Nov. 2024
That was a confounding error given the sizable Puerto Rican population in some of the key swing states — including more than 400,000 people in Pennsylvania.
—Niall Stanage, The Hill, 30 Oct. 2024
Finally, this study does not take into account other confounding influences such as socioeconomic status and peer effects—an indication that the research on teen marijuana use should be done by using longitudinal studies to understand their trends.
—Dario Sabaghi, Forbes, 29 Oct. 2024
Watch on Deadline Cuarón’s confounding seven-part series titled Disclaimer from Apple+ is fomenting debate this week, having been greeted equally with praise and second-guessing.
—Peter Bart, Deadline, 25 Oct. 2024
See all Example Sentences for confound 
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Cam Inman, The Mercury News, 16 Nov. 2024
That was a confounding error given the sizable Puerto Rican population in some of the key swing states — including more than 400,000 people in Pennsylvania.
—Niall Stanage, The Hill, 30 Oct. 2024
Finally, this study does not take into account other confounding influences such as socioeconomic status and peer effects—an indication that the research on teen marijuana use should be done by using longitudinal studies to understand their trends.
—Dario Sabaghi, Forbes, 29 Oct. 2024
Watch on Deadline Cuarón’s confounding seven-part series titled Disclaimer from Apple+ is fomenting debate this week, having been greeted equally with praise and second-guessing.
—Peter Bart, Deadline, 25 Oct. 2024
See all Example Sentences for confound
Dictionary Entries Near confound
Cite this Entry
“Confound.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/confound. Accessed 1 Dec. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
confound
verb
con·found
kən-ˈfau̇nd
kän-
2
: to throw into disorder : mix up : confuse
our clever tactics confounded our opponents
confoundedly
adverb
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