addle

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ad·dle

 (ăd′l)
v. ad·dled, ad·dling, ad·dles
v.tr.
To cause (someone) to think unclearly; confuse: "My brain is a bit addled by whiskey" (Eugene O'Neill). See Synonyms at befuddle.
v.intr.
1. To become confused.
2. To become rotten, as an egg.
[From Middle English adel, rotten, from Old English adel, pool of excrement.]
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

addle

(ˈædəl)
vb
1. to make or become confused or muddled
2. to make or become rotten
adj
(in combination) indicating a confused or muddled state: addle-brained; addle-pated.
[C18: (vb), back formation from addled, from c13 addle rotten, from Old English adela filth; related to dialect German Addel liquid manure]

addle

(ˈædəl)
vb
dialect Northern English to earn (money or one's living)
[C13: addlen, from Old Norse öthlask to gain possession of property, from ōthal property]
Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014

ad•dle

(ˈæd l)

v. -dled, -dling,
adj. v.t., v.i.
1. to make or become confused.
2. to make or become rotten, as eggs.
adj.
3. mentally confused; muddled (usu. used in combination): addleheaded.
4. rotten: addle eggs.
[before 1000; Middle English adel rotten, Old English adela liquid, filth]
Random House Kernerman Webster's College Dictionary, © 2010 K Dictionaries Ltd. Copyright 2005, 1997, 1991 by Random House, Inc. All rights reserved.

addle


Past participle: addled
Gerund: addling

Imperative
addle
addle
Present
I addle
you addle
he/she/it addles
we addle
you addle
they addle
Preterite
I addled
you addled
he/she/it addled
we addled
you addled
they addled
Present Continuous
I am addling
you are addling
he/she/it is addling
we are addling
you are addling
they are addling
Present Perfect
I have addled
you have addled
he/she/it has addled
we have addled
you have addled
they have addled
Past Continuous
I was addling
you were addling
he/she/it was addling
we were addling
you were addling
they were addling
Past Perfect
I had addled
you had addled
he/she/it had addled
we had addled
you had addled
they had addled
Future
I will addle
you will addle
he/she/it will addle
we will addle
you will addle
they will addle
Future Perfect
I will have addled
you will have addled
he/she/it will have addled
we will have addled
you will have addled
they will have addled
Future Continuous
I will be addling
you will be addling
he/she/it will be addling
we will be addling
you will be addling
they will be addling
Present Perfect Continuous
I have been addling
you have been addling
he/she/it has been addling
we have been addling
you have been addling
they have been addling
Future Perfect Continuous
I will have been addling
you will have been addling
he/she/it will have been addling
we will have been addling
you will have been addling
they will have been addling
Past Perfect Continuous
I had been addling
you had been addling
he/she/it had been addling
we had been addling
you had been addling
they had been addling
Conditional
I would addle
you would addle
he/she/it would addle
we would addle
you would addle
they would addle
Past Conditional
I would have addled
you would have addled
he/she/it would have addled
we would have addled
you would have addled
they would have addled
Collins English Verb Tables © HarperCollins Publishers 2011
ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:
Verb1.addle - mix up or confuseaddle - mix up or confuse; "He muddled the issues"
muddle, puddle
mix up, jumble, confuse - assemble without order or sense; "She jumbles the words when she is supposed to write a sentence"
2.addle - become rottenaddle - become rotten; "addled eggs"  
go bad, spoil - become unfit for consumption or use; "the meat must be eaten before it spoils"
Based on WordNet 3.0, Farlex clipart collection. © 2003-2012 Princeton University, Farlex Inc.

addle

verb
1. confuse, bewilder, mix up, muddle, perplex, fluster, stupefy, befuddle, fuddle I suppose the shock had addled his poor brain.
2. go off, turn (Brit. informal), spoil, rot, go bad, turn bad The heat had addled the milk and the stink made her retch.
Collins Thesaurus of the English Language – Complete and Unabridged 2nd Edition. 2002 © HarperCollins Publishers 1995, 2002

addle

verb
To cause to be unclear in mind or intent:
befuddle, bewilder, confound, confuse, discombobulate, dizzy, fuddle, jumble, mix up, muddle, mystify, perplex, puzzle.
Informal: throw.
Idiom: make one's head reel.
The American Heritage® Roget's Thesaurus. Copyright © 2013, 2014 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
Translations

addle

vt
brain → benebeln
egg → faul werden lassen, verderben lassen
vi (egg) → verderben, faul werden
Collins German Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged 7th Edition 2005. © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1980 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1997, 1999, 2004, 2005, 2007
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We still had a big pay-day coming to us, and for thirty-seven days, without a drink to addle our mental processes, we incessantly planned the spending of our money.
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You'll addle your brain, that's what you'll do, Philip."
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It was a feathered riddle; a mystery hatched out of an egg, and just as mysterious as if the egg had been addle!
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