mess

1 of 2

noun

1
: a quantity of food:
a
archaic : food set on a table at one time
b
: a prepared dish of soft food
also : a mixture of ingredients cooked or eaten together
c
: enough food of a specified kind for a dish or a meal
picked a mess of peas for dinner
2
a
: a group of persons who regularly take their meals together
every officer with a unit … is obliged to belong to a messS. G. Maurice
also : a meal so taken
b
: a place where meals are regularly served to a group : mess hall
The soldiers marched to the mess for breakfast.
3
a
: a disordered, untidy, offensive, or unpleasant state or condition
your room is in a mess
b
: one that is disordered, untidy, offensive, or unpleasant usually because of blundering, laxity, or misconduct
[the movie] is a mess, as sloppy in concept as it is in executionJudith Crist
4
: a large quantity or number
They're in a mess of trouble.

mess

2 of 2

verb

messed; messing; messes

transitive verb

1
: to provide with meals at a mess
2
a
: to make dirty or untidy : disarrange
often used with up
don't mess up your room
b
: to mix up : bungle
often used with up
really messed up my life
3
: to interfere with
often used with up
magnetic storms that mess up communicationsTime
4
: to rough up : manhandle
often used with up
mess him up good so he won't cheat us again

intransitive verb

1
: to take meals with a mess
2
: to make a mess
3
a
: putter, trifle
children like to mess around with paints
b
: to handle or play with something especially carelessly
don't mess with my camera
often used with around
c
: to take an active interest in something or someone
messing around with new video techniques
also : interfere, meddle
messing in other people's affairs
you'd better not mess with me
4
: to become confused or make an error
usually used with up

Examples of mess in a Sentence

Noun He was a mess after gardening all day. My hair is a mess. Well, that's another fine mess you've gotten me into! How do we get ourselves into these messes? The school system is a mess. Things were a real mess for a while after she retired. My life is a complete mess. She was a real mess for a while after her divorce. He was a mess during his daughter's wedding ceremony. Verb please don't mess with me while I'm trying to concentrate
Recent Examples on the Web
Noun
The plastic eggshells make for convenient storage to help prevent slimy messes. Maya Polton, Parents, 18 Mar. 2024 The Nazi movement was a chaotic mess of struggling in-groups who feared and despised one another. Adam Gopnik, The New Yorker, 18 Mar. 2024 Up close what’s clear is only that the characters are a mess and their relationships a muddle. Angie Han, The Hollywood Reporter, 18 Mar. 2024 Davis would have swatted or altered or just plain stopped much of that mess. Bill Plaschke, Los Angeles Times, 17 Mar. 2024 Luckily, a lost fork is an easy mess to clean up — and the situation can be prevented by tethering it down. Stefanie Waldek, Travel + Leisure, 14 Mar. 2024 Best Kitchen Cleaners These mighty kitchen cleaners are reporting for duty to take on all your tough messes, from counters to dishes. Ella Field, Better Homes & Gardens, 13 Mar. 2024 Sidekick to: Larry David Would Curb Your Enthusiasm's Larry be able to make a complete mess of any awkward situation without his manager/best buddy? Ew Staff Updated, EW.com, 6 Mar. 2024 In the meantime, restricting Pumpkin to one part of your home – one that is the easiest to clean – can help with the mess and odor. Joan Morris, The Mercury News, 4 Mar. 2024
Verb
This point is very easy to overlook, and almost every business owner has messed this up at times. Evan Kirkpatrick, Forbes, 26 Feb. 2024 Of course, there's a chance that Big Media will mess it up. Scharon Harding, Ars Technica, 7 Feb. 2024 There are endless ways to make them–and mess them up. Lisa Cericola, Southern Living, 5 Feb. 2024 Still, Jardin approaches this story rather as the smirking, meddling Forbes seemingly enters the party: as an agent of chaos, out to mix and mess things up for the sheer hell of it. Guy Lodge, Variety, 21 Jan. 2024 Weighing in at just 3 pounds, the handheld vacuum is easy to carry from mess to mess. Clara McMahon, Peoplemag, 18 Jan. 2024 Some companies mess this up, but the ones that get it right are doing well, Singh said. Kylie Robison, Fortune, 13 Dec. 2023 Faced with these choices, the tendency is to either freeze (do nothing) or make a quick choice to reduce your anxiety (and potentially mess everything up). Ken Sterling, Forbes, 28 Nov. 2023 Weighing in at just under 3 pounds, the handheld vacuum is super easy to carry from mess to mess. Clara McMahon, Peoplemag, 24 Oct. 2023

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'mess.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Noun and Verb

Middle English mes, from Anglo-French, from Late Latin missus course at a meal, from missus, past participle of mittere to put, from Latin, to send — more at smite

First Known Use

Noun

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb

14th century, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of mess was in the 14th century

Dictionary Entries Near mess

Cite this Entry

“Mess.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/mess. Accessed 28 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

mess

1 of 2 noun
1
a
: a quantity of food
b
: a dish of soft food
a mess of porridge
2
a
: a group of people who regularly eat together
also : the meal they eat
b
: a place where meals are regularly served to a group : mess hall
3
: a state or condition of confusion, disorder, or unpleasantness
left things in a mess
also : one that is in such a state or condition
his life was a mess
4
: a large quantity or number
a mess of problems

mess

2 of 2 verb
1
a
: to supply with meals
b
: to take meals with a mess
2
a
: to make dirty or untidy : disarrange
don't mess up your room
b
: to do incorrectly
messed up the job
c
: to become confused or make an error
tried again and messed up again
3
: to interfere with
the storm messed up our plans
4
a
: to work without a serious goal : putter
likes to mess around with paints
b
: to handle or play with something especially carelessly
don't mess with the camera
c
: interfere sense 2, meddle
don't mess with me
5
: to rough up : manhandle

More from Merriam-Webster on mess

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!