English Meaning & Definitions
Untidy, dirty, or lacking neatness and order.
- “He left his bedroom in a very messy state before leaving for school.”
- “Her desk is always piled high with messy stacks of papers.”
Confused, disorganized, or difficult to manage or resolve.
- “The company went through a messy corporate restructuring last year.”
- “They are currently going through a very messy divorce.”
English Synonyms & Near Equivalents
Comprehensive Thesaurus Breakdown
Compare formal, informal, literary synonyms and register nuances for “messy”.
Derived from the noun 'mess' (meaning a portion of food, a mixed company, or a dirty state), which comes from Old French 'mes' (dish, portion of food), ultimately from Latin 'missus' (put, sent, or served). Over time, the meaning shifted from a serving of food to a confused mixture, and eventually to untidiness.
Imagine your room is a 'MESS', and it makes you feel un'Y' (messy).
Frequently Asked Questions About “messy”
1. What is the meaning of “messy” in English?
In English, messy (adjective) is defined as: “Untidy, dirty, or lacking neatness and order.”.
2. How do you use “messy” in a sentence?
“He left his bedroom in a very messy state before leaving for school.”
3. What are English synonyms of “messy”?
4. What is the etymology and word origin of “messy”?
Derived from the noun 'mess' (meaning a portion of food, a mixed company, or a dirty state), which comes from Old French 'mes' (dish, portion of food), ultimately from Latin 'missus' (put, sent, or served). Over time, the meaning shifted from a serving of food to a confused mixture, and eventually to untidiness.
🇬🇧More English Words to English
View all English words →The base unit of time in the International System of Units (SI), equal to the duration of 9,192,631,770 periods of the radiation corresponding to the transition between the two hyperfine levels of the ground state of the caesium-133 atom.
A specific duration of time equal to one hour and forty-six minutes and twelve seconds.
The cardinal number equal to one thousand million (1,000,000,000), expressed in scientific notation as 10^9.
A specific duration of time equivalent to one hour and forty-six minutes.