Amuse and Bemuse are NOT very close in meaning—or at least were not originally, but that may be changing (see below). However, for now, they are still different and they are constantly confused by native speakers. You should be aware that you will probably hear native speakers use bemuse incorrectly—as if it meant amuse.
Amuse means “to entertain.”
Bemuse means “to confuse, distract, or absorb someone’s attention”:
You amuse me so much with your jokes that I can’t stop laughing.
Your instructions contradict each other, so I am bemused.
Amuse and bemuse are usually confused in the passive voice, in contexts such as the following:
I am bemused by your behavior.
How to use "Amuse" in a Sentence
Here is a list of sentences that use the word amuse, to help you reinforce its meaning and usage:
- Please stop trying to amuse me with your jokes.
- The doctor was amused by his grandchildren.
- If you're looking for a good time, go to an amusement park and have some fun!
- The circus was full of people waiting to be amused.
- The teacher's instructions were so amusing that the students laughed aloud.
- I'm going to amuse myself by watching TV while I eat my dinner.
- I'm running out of things to do to amuse myself.
- I was distracted by Joe's amusing anecdote.
How to use "Bemuse" in a Sentence
And here are some more sentences that use the word amuse, to further illustrate its meaning and usage:
- The audience was bemused by the speaker's bumbling introduction.
- Before accepting the award, he bemused the crowd with his anti-celeb speech.
- Rosemary Brown was overcome with bemusement.
- Everyone in the bar was bemused to see one of the two brothers wearing such a tattered T-shirt.
- The judge looked bemused at the witness, who was obviously lying.
- He sat back in his chair and bemusedly ate his cereal.
- The bemusement on his face was evident when he saw the size of the bill.
- I was bemused by the question at first, but I eventually realized what he was getting at.