bewildered

Bewildered is an adjective meaning perplexed or confused, often as a result of unexpected information or a puzzling situation. It can describe a person who is unsure how to respond, or a scene in which events are difficult to understand. The term commonly conveys a sense of being overwhelmed or disoriented.

The word comes from be- plus wild, with the sense of being led into a wild or unmanageable state. The modern meaning of causing confusion developed in English over time, with the earliest uses in Middle English. The nuance can imply both mental confusion and a feeling of losing one’s bearings.

Bewildered is often used in narrative writing to describe a character’s reaction to surprising or contradictory information. It can express mild confusion or deeper perplexity, depending on context. It often appears with a noun such as a look or expression, as in a bewildered look.

Related forms include the verb bewilder, meaning to confuse or perplex; the noun bewilderment; the adjective bewildering; and the adverb bewilderedly. Related concepts in everyday language include confusion and perplexity, which share a sense of uncertainty but differ in intensity and usage.