bewilder

The absurdist’s power rests in their ability to befuddle and bewilder, trusting the joke will land with the right folks and insult their target’s intelligence.

From Salon ● May 21, 2026

Essential to a wilderness is its capacity to bewilder, and though certain of Church’s colleagues in the Hudson River group, notably Worthington Whittredge, brilliantly captured this dense, enfolding quality, Church seldom did.

From The Wall Street Journal ● May 1, 2026

If the soul of Leif Erikson were to materialize inside his statue for a day, much of what he saw would bewilder him.

From Seattle Times ● Nov. 13, 2023

The real world may initially bewilder Barbie, but she figures it out.

From New York Times ● Jul. 18, 2023

Actually, it’s far, far worse than that because AT maps—for reasons that bewilder me beyond speculation—provide less detail than even their meager scale allows.

From "A Walk in the Woods" by Bill Bryson

The variety of goals that the Japanese striker scores is astonishing, but all of them have one thing in common - speed of thought that bewilders the unfortunates tasked with the job of marking him.

From BBC ● Apr. 8, 2023

Basra continually bewilders experts, envoys and residents: How can a relatively stable province so rich in resources rank among the poorest and most under-developed in the country?

From Washington Times ● Mar. 24, 2023

Basra continually bewilders experts, envoys and residents: How can a relatively stable province so rich in resources rank among the poorest and most underdeveloped in the country?

From Seattle Times ● Mar. 23, 2023

In Herman Melville’s 1853 short story “Bartleby, the Scrivener,” a Wall Street clerk bewilders his manager by politely refusing to do basic tasks, including leaving the office.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 27, 2022

It conducts the mind to no firm resting place; it bewilders instead of elucidating our notions of God, of man, and the universe.

From A Few Words About the Devil And Other Biographical Sketches and Essays by Charles Bradlaugh

MVP Matt Stafford looks washed up; generational quarterback Herbert looks lost; and coaching geniuses Sean McVay and Jim Harbaugh look bewildered.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 24, 2026

Cong has bewildered opponents at weigh-ins while wearing the face paint, and says she even adopts the Joker alias when using social media messaging back home in China.

From BBC ● Oct. 3, 2026

Other times, I was interviewing believers and, more often, their bewildered loved ones.

From Slate ● Sep. 22, 2026

The bewildered CEO was reminded that she had asked a question on the deck’s topic.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 2, 2026

The painters who visited Picasso’s studio mostly left bewildered.

From "The Mona Lisa Vanishes" by Nicholas Day

Although there weren’t many of them numerically, the errors that the A.I. did make were confusing and bewildering enough to be disqualifying.

From Slate ● Oct. 16, 2026

That’s what makes the start to the Los Angeles Chargers’ season so bewildering.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 21, 2026

One of the more bewildering primary results of the year came this week in Michigan’s 8th Congressional District, a swing seat currently represented by Democratic freshman Rep. Kristen McDonald Rivet.

From Slate ● Aug. 8, 2026

While border officials contact authorities nationwide to verify the identity of those who don't have any form of ID, the process for newly arrived Afghans can be bewildering.

From Barron's ● Jul. 3, 2026

The words were acceptable enough, it was the indifferent tone that was bewildering.

From "The Witch of Blackbird Pond" by Elizabeth George Speare