IMBROGLIO: 1: a confused mass 2: a complicated situation 3: a violently confused or bitterly complicated altercation: embroilment
"Imbroglio" and "embroilment" are more than just synonyms; they're also linked through etymology. Both descend from the Middle French verb embrouiller (same meaning as "embroil"), from the prefix em -, meaing "thoroughly," plus brouiller, "to jumble" or "to confuse." (Brouiller is itself a descendant of an Old French word for broth.) Early in the 17th century, English-speakers began using "embroil," a direct adaptation of embrouiller. Our noun "embroilment," which also entered the langauge in the early 17th century, comes from the same source. Meanwhile, the Italians were using their own alteration of embrouiller: imbrogliare, meaning "to entangle." In the mid-18th century, English-speakers embraced the Italian noun imbrolglio as well.
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