murky

adjective

ˈmər-kē How to pronounce murky (audio)
Definition of murkynext
1
as in darkened
being without light or without much light I didn't like walking around the murky campground without a flashlight

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2
as in dark
causing or marked by an atmosphere lacking in cheer the murky shadows of the cemetery

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3
as in hazy
filled with or dimmed by fine particles (as of dust or water) in suspension skies made murky from the smoke of forest fires that were many miles to the west

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4
as in ambiguous
having an often intentionally veiled or uncertain meaning a murky reply to a question about his intentions

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5
as in vague
not seen or understood clearly a gubernatorial candidate with a murky position on the hot-button issue of capital punishment

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of murky Wes Straight pulls a tub of murky liquid from the fridge, then ladles some into a steel bowl the size of his palm. — Jenna Thompson, Kansas City Star, 7 Mar. 2025 Details on the anti-fraud project though have been murky, including how DOGE staffers, who are mostly allies of Musk with no experience on complex government entitlement programs, would define what amounts to fraud, which is typically investigated by inspectors general at the agency. — Anne Flaherty, ABC News, 7 Mar. 2025 But the specifics of how these feedstocks could have actually come together to set the stage for life have remained murky. — Conor Feehly, Scientific American, 4 Mar. 2025 Ivan Stupak, a former Ukrainian intelligence official, told Newsweek that while the details are still murky, the block is likely to significantly impact Ukraine's access to anti-aircraft missiles, especially interceptor missiles fired by the U.S.-made Patriot air defense system. — Ellie Cook, Newsweek, 4 Mar. 2025 See All Example Sentences for murky
Recent Examples of Synonyms for murky
  1. dark
  2. hazy
  3. ambiguous
  4. vague
  5. bleak
  6. misty
  7. cryptic
  8. faint
Adjective
  • Los Angeles and San Diego, which have missed out on more than 5 inches of typical rain since October, should see soaking rain after dark.
    — Mary Gilbert, CNN, 11 Mar. 2025
  • An adults-only drama about an exotic dancer's entanglements with a rich family (and its many secrets), Tyler Perry's Beauty in Black is dark, violent, and scandalous, with storylines revolving around murder, blackmail, and human trafficking.
    — Randall Colburn, EW.com, 11 Mar. 2025
Definition of dark
Adjective
  • Thin lines and hazy glowing colors make the towering, randomized geometric structures look like something from a French comic book.
    — PCMAG, PCMAG, 16 Mar. 2025
  • Recall what the natural 2024 total solar eclipse looked like: a hazy white halo around a dark circle.
    — Monisha Ravisetti, Space.com, 12 Mar. 2025
Definition of hazy
Adjective
  • Team Harris’s strategy appeared to rely heavily on a short campaign window, with a sparse interview schedule, slow windup to unscripted events, and ambiguous policy positions.
    — W. James Antle III, Washington Examiner - Political News and Conservative Analysis About Congress, the President, and the Federal Government, 14 Mar. 2025
  • Instead, security leaders typically present compliance checklists, regulatory obligations and ambiguous risk scores that executives then struggle to translate into financial and operational impact.
    — Jerry Layden, Forbes, 12 Mar. 2025
Definition of ambiguous
Adjective
  • Not after the 49ers asked him to take a pay cut last year and after general manager John Lynch’s vague response when asked recently about the fullback’s future.
    — Matt Barrows, The Athletic, 11 Mar. 2025
  • Courtenay Brown Mar 6, 2025 - Business Trump stares down early economic potholes Buy your local economist a drink: The economic backdrop is more chaotic and uncertain than it's been in years — a result of fast-moving and sometimes vague Trump policy.
    — Axios, Axios, 11 Mar. 2025
Definition of vague
Adjective
  • Even the relatively staid premiere stole a handful of grim chuckles thanks to its guest star’s exceedingly blasé delivery of impossibly bleak news.
    — Ben Travers, IndieWire, 9 Mar. 2025
  • However, experts have raised concerns about the health of the American economy, warning that the outlook for U.S. businesses and consumers may be bleak, a sentiment shared by many industry executives.
    — Tommy Tuberville, Newsweek, 7 Mar. 2025
Definition of bleak
Adjective
  • Tall palm trees and bamboo and beyond them high misty mountains covered with vegetation of a deep monsoon green.
    — Amitava Kumar, The New Yorker, 8 Mar. 2025
  • Whether in the misty forests of Costa Rica, the savannas of Kenya, or the rugged Highlands of Scotland, this new model of travel offers more than a vacation.
    — Ashlee Marie Preston, Forbes, 9 Jan. 2025
Definition of misty
Adjective
  • Women possessed by the gods were oracles, predicting the future in cryptic utterances.
    — Vipin Bharathan, Forbes, 9 Mar. 2025
  • Escher String Quartet Jorgensen Center for the Performing Arts, 2132 Hillside Road, Storrs The Escher String Quartet, named for the cryptic artist M.C. Escher, performs pieces by Ravel, Mendelssohn and Mozart on March 4 at 7:30 p.m. $39, $37 seniors, free for students and youth.
    — Christopher Arnott, Hartford Courant, 1 Mar. 2025
Definition of cryptic
Adjective
  • My duties typically involved being sent to the nearby New York Public Library to hunt down some faint memory scratching at Carter’s brain.
    — Seth Abramovitch, The Hollywood Reporter, 20 Mar. 2025
  • Most of the files are scans of documents, and some are blurred or have become faint or difficult to read in the decades since Kennedy's assassination.
    — Joel Shannon, USA TODAY, 19 Mar. 2025
Definition of faint

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“Murky.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/murky. Accessed 24 Mar. 2025.

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