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Today it means

imbroglio

an extremely confused or complicated situation

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Where does the word "imbroglio" come from? It comes from Italian imbrogliare, and was adopted directly into English (1750s).

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Where does the word "imbroglio" come from? It comes from Italian imbrogliare, and was adopted directly into English (1750s).

Imbroglio’s story begins in Italian: imbrogliare meant “to entangle.” To entangle; English 'embroil' comes from the related French 'embrouiller'. It reached English by 1750s as imbroglio. First a confused heap, then a tangled situation. Today, imbroglio means an extremely confused or complicated situation.

  1. Stage 1 · Italian · medieval imbrogliare "to entangle", to entangle; English 'embroil' comes from the related French 'embrouiller'.
  2. Stage 2 · English · 1750s imbroglio "tangle", first a confused heap, then a tangled situation.

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