muddy the waters
Meaning: To make a situation confusing, often on purpose.
Language: English
Literally: (Already vivid in English)
Example: “The lawyer's new witness only muddied the waters.”
Category: Nature
Origin: Stirring up the bottom of a pond or stream clouds the water so that nothing can be seen clearly. William Ames used the image figuratively in 1633 — "he mudds the water, and so would mislead the simple" — and it has meant deliberate confusion ever since.
Other ways to say this
- French: Noyer le poisson — literally: To drown the fish
- Japanese: お茶を濁す (ocha o nigosu) — literally: To muddy the tea
- Russian: Заговаривать зубы (Zagovarivat' zuby) — literally: To talk someone's teeth away
- Greek: Άλλα λόγια ν' αγαπιόμαστε — literally: Other words so we may love each other
- English: give someone the runaround
More idioms — Nature
- have the wind in one's sails — To be doing well and moving forward with confidence and momentum.
- add fuel to the fire — To make a bad situation worse.
- have stars in one's eyes — To be dazzled or dreamily idealistic, especially about love or fame.
- hit a snag — To run into an unexpected problem.
- rise from the ashes — To be reborn or rebuilt after destruction or failure.
- shed light on — To help explain something or make it clearer.
More English idioms
- be bone idle — To be extremely lazy.
- like pulling teeth — Extremely difficult, especially when trying to get someone to cooperate.
- put one's foot in it — To say something tactless or embarrassing.
- talk behind someone's back — To say unkind things about someone when they are not present.
- have pins and needles — To feel a prickling, tingling sensation in a limb that has gone numb.
- be on pins and needles — To be very anxious while waiting for something.
From our proverbs
- Three women and a goose make a market. — Excessive noise and commotion from small groups can create an illusion of bustling activi…
- An ill marriage is a spring of ill fortune. — Poor marital compatibility creates cascading hardships affecting every aspect of one's li…
- Marriage halves our griefs, and doubles our joys. — Shared burdens become lighter while shared happiness multiplies through the intimate part…