Crossword Genius

Waded and got quietly confused (7)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

paddled

I'm a little stuck... Click here to teach me more about this clue!

'waded and' is the definition.
I can't judge whether this defines the answer.

'quietly confused' is the wordplay.
'quietly' becomes 'p' (p for piano and quiet).
'confused' becomes 'addled' (eg drug-addled).
'p'+'addled'='PADDLED'

'got' acts as a link.

Can you help me to learn more?

(Other definitions for paddled that I've seen before include "moved boat manually" , "Walked in shallow water" .)

I've seen this clue in The Mirror.
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