Through sounding baffled or confounded (5)
I believe the answer is:
threw
'confounded' is the definition.
('throw' can be a synonym of 'confound')
'through sounding' is the wordplay.
'sounding' indicates a 'sounds like' (homophone) clue.
'through' sounds like 'THREW'.
'baffled or' is the link.
I am not very happy about this link. Some or all of it may belong to another bit of the clue.
Can you help me to learn more?
(Other definitions for threw that I've seen before include "'Hurled, flung (5)'" , "Projected through the air" , "produced no-ball" , "Confused" , "Propelled through the air" .)