mixed messages/signals
plural noun
: a showing of thoughts or feelings that are very different from each other
I don't know if he likes me; he keeps giving me mixed messages.
She's sending mixed signals about her feelings.
Examples of mixed messages/signals in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Distance yourself from drama and chaos or those trying to confuse you by sending mixed messages.
—
Eugenia Last, The Mercury News, 16 May 2024
Children do best when parents are collaborative and have consistent rules and discipline between homes.2
Having two sets of rules in two different homes—if one parent allows television before bed and the other does not, for example—can send mixed messages to the children.
—Michelle Dempsey-Multack, Parents, 14 May 2024
At former President Donald Trump’s two rallies in Wisconsin this year, voters have heard mixed messages on voting early.
—Hope Karnopp, Journal Sentinel, 10 May 2024
But the Census Bureau’s move to count numbers connected to the LGBTQ+ community – and of people who express other gender identities, such as non-binary – comes at a time when the broader American public is sending mixed signals to those communities.
—Andre Mouchard, Orange County Register, 8 May 2024
To be sure, data in recent weeks have offered mixed signals on the economy.
—Jason Ma, Fortune, 5 May 2024
And the Arab world is getting – the rest of the world, actually, is getting mixed messages.
—CBS News, 5 May 2024
But in reality the vote sent mixed signals about America’s place in the world and Washington’s appetite for maintaining a strong leadership role, some foreign policy analysts say.
—Howard Lafranchi, The Christian Science Monitor, 23 Apr. 2024
The earlier TikTok bill, which passed the House 352-65 just last month, has so far lingered in the Senate, with lawmakers there giving mixed messages about its future.
—Lauren Feiner, The Verge, 20 Apr. 2024
Eugenia Last, The Mercury News, 16 May 2024
Children do best when parents are collaborative and have consistent rules and discipline between homes.2
Having two sets of rules in two different homes—if one parent allows television before bed and the other does not, for example—can send mixed messages to the children.
—Michelle Dempsey-Multack, Parents, 14 May 2024
At former President Donald Trump’s two rallies in Wisconsin this year, voters have heard mixed messages on voting early.
—Hope Karnopp, Journal Sentinel, 10 May 2024
But the Census Bureau’s move to count numbers connected to the LGBTQ+ community – and of people who express other gender identities, such as non-binary – comes at a time when the broader American public is sending mixed signals to those communities.
—Andre Mouchard, Orange County Register, 8 May 2024
To be sure, data in recent weeks have offered mixed signals on the economy.
—Jason Ma, Fortune, 5 May 2024
And the Arab world is getting – the rest of the world, actually, is getting mixed messages.
—CBS News, 5 May 2024
But in reality the vote sent mixed signals about America’s place in the world and Washington’s appetite for maintaining a strong leadership role, some foreign policy analysts say.
—Howard Lafranchi, The Christian Science Monitor, 23 Apr. 2024
The earlier TikTok bill, which passed the House 352-65 just last month, has so far lingered in the Senate, with lawmakers there giving mixed messages about its future.
—Lauren Feiner, The Verge, 20 Apr. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'mixed messages/signals.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
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Cite this Entry
“Mixed messages/signals.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/mixed%20messages%2Fsignals. Accessed 1 Jun. 2024.
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