morass
/məˈras
/noun
1An area of muddy or boggy ground: in midwinter the track beneath this bridge became a muddy morass...
- We tend to take such well maintained paths for granted but on the mountain the contrast between the good path and the muddy morass is all too obvious.
- Trails through the jungle growth were impassable by the muddy morass.
- On the appointed day the Queen inspected a muddy, smelly morass.
Synonyms
quagmire, swamp, bog, marsh, mire, quag, marshland, peat bog, fen, slough, quicksand;
Scottish & Northern English moss, carr;
Irish corcass;
North American bayou, pocosin, moor
archaic marish
2A complicated or confused situation: she would become lost in a morass of lies and explanations...
- Their bond is deep, and they have found mutual understanding amid a morass of confusion.
- But this whole issue has been lost in a morass of other complications.
- Rumours persist too of other investments in properties and companies; of a morass of financial dealings so complicated that the police are having difficulty getting to the bottom of it all.
Synonyms
confusion, chaos, muddle, tangle, entanglement, imbroglio, mix-up, jumble, clutter;
mire, quagmire;
West Indian comess
Origin
Late 15th century: from Dutch moeras, alteration (by assimilation to moer 'moor') of Middle Dutch marasch, from Old French marais 'marsh', from medieval Latin mariscus.