Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

mare's nest

/ˈmɛːz nɛst/

Word Rarity Very rare

Frequency: Zipf frequency 2.08 in modern English

Syllables: mare's nest
IPA: /ˈmɛːz nɛst/

11

Scrabble Score

9

Letters

1

Syllables

7

Unique Chars

Meaning

noun

A great discovery which turns out to be illusory; especially, a hoax.

noun

A confused or complicated situation; a muddle.

Example Sentences

"Near-synonyms: bullshit, horseshit"
"Why dost thou laugh? What Mares nest hast thou found?"
"“Rubbish!” cried Lawrence angrily. “In my opinion the whole thing is a mare’s nest of Bauerstein’s! Wilkins hadn’t an idea of such a thing, until Bauerstein put it into his head. But, like all specialists, Bauerstein’s got a bee in his bonnet. Poisons are his hobby, so of course he sees them everywhere.”"
"Though Chancellor Maupeou had supported the idea of a trial [...], the legal proceedings developed into a mare's nest of accusations and counter-accusations."

Etymology

Alteration of earlier horse's nest, from the fanciful and unlikely notion that horses make nests.

Regional Pronunciation

British English: /ˈmɛːz nɛst/

Inflected Forms

mare's nests (plural) mares' nests (plural)

Phrases

blinker fluid muffler bearing fool's gold hen's tooth rocking horse shit

Frequently Paired Words

blinker fluid muffler bearing fool's gold hen's tooth rocking horse shit snark boar's nest

Synonyms

bullshit horseshit rat's nest clutter jumble muddle fuddle welter smother

Questions

How do you pronounce mare's nest?: The recorded pronunciation is /ˈmɛːz nɛst/.
What does mare's nest mean?: A great discovery which turns out to be illusory; especially, a hoax.
Where does mare's nest come from?: Alteration of earlier horse's nest, from the fanciful and unlikely notion that horses make nests.

How to pronounce mare's nest

Open the pronunciation page — Open the Speakur entry for “mare's nest”.
Read the phonetic spelling — Read the IPA spelling (/ˈmɛːz nɛst/) so you know which sounds to aim for.
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