tr.v. Informal, -moxed, -mox·ing, -mox·es.
To confuse; perplex.
[Probably of English dialectal origin.]
Dictionary:
flum·mox (flŭm'əks)
|
[Probably of English dialectal origin.]
Word Overheard:
flummoxed |
Sunni? Shiite? When the rank and file are unsure of the differences between warring factions in the Muslim world, it's a bit unsettling. But when counterterrorism officials in the FBI and Congress are flummoxed (befuddled) by the question, it is far more troubling. The chief of the FBI's new national security branch was asked if it was important to know the difference:
"'Yes, sure, it's right to know the difference,' he said. 'It's important to know who your targets are...' Next I asked him if he could tell me the difference. He was flummoxed. 'The basics goes back to their beliefs and who they were following,' he said. 'And the conflicts between the Sunnis and the Shia and the difference between who they were following.' "
Link: Can You Tell a Sunni From a Shiite? - New York Times
Posted October 17, 2006.
See our Word Overheard blog to see interesting uses of strange words.
Thesaurus:
flummox |
verb
WordNet:
flummox |
Translations:
flummox |
Dansk (Danish)
v. tr. - gøre perpleks, gå fra koncepterne
Nederlands (Dutch)
verbijsteren
Français (French)
v. tr. - démonter, couper le sifflet à (fam)
Deutsch (German)
v. - durcheinanderbringen
Ελληνική (Greek)
v. - ζαλίζω, σαστίζω
Italiano (Italian)
sconcertare, confondere, imbarazzare
Português (Portuguese)
v. - aturdir (gír.)
Русский (Russian)
ошеломлять, сбивать с толку, рушиться
Español (Spanish)
v. tr. - desconcertar, despistar
Svenska (Swedish)
v. - bringa ur fattningen (vard.)
中文(简体)(Chinese (Simplified))
使狼狈, 使混乱, 使失措
中文(繁體)(Chinese (Traditional))
v. tr. - 使狼狽, 使混亂, 使失措
한국어 (Korean)
v. tr. - ~을 얼떨떨하게 하다
العربيه (Arabic)
(فعل) يذهل , يحير
עברית (Hebrew)
v. tr. - בילבל, הביך
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