puz·zle (p z  l)v. puz·zled, puz·zling, puz·zles v.tr. 1. To baffle or confuse mentally by presenting or being a difficult problem or matter. 2. To clarify or solve (something confusing) by reasoning or study: He puzzled out the significance of the statement. v.intr. 1. To be perplexed. 2. To ponder over a problem in an effort to solve or understand it. n. 1. Something, such as a game, toy, or problem, that requires ingenuity and often persistence in solving or assembling. 2. Something that baffles or confuses. 3. The condition of being perplexed; bewilderment. [Origin unknown.] puz zler n.Synonyms: puzzle, perplex, mystify, bewilder, confound These verbs mean to cause bafflement or confusion. Puzzle suggests difficulty in solving or interpreting something: "The poor creature puzzled me once . . . by a question merely natural and innocent" (Daniel Defoe). Perplex stresses uncertainty or anxiety, as over reaching an understanding or finding a solution: a dilemma that perplexed the committee. Mystify implies defying comprehension by obscuring facts: symbolism that mystifies me. Bewilder emphasizes extreme mental confusion: "The old know what they want; the young are sad and bewildered" (Logan Pearsall Smith). To confound is to confuse and astonish: God hath chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise (I Corinthians 1:27). |
ThesaurusLegend: Synonyms Related Words Antonyms
| Adj. | 1. | puzzling - not clear to the understanding; "I didn't grasp the meaning of that enigmatic comment until much later"; "prophetic texts so enigmatic that their meaning has been disputed for centuries" uncomprehensible, incomprehensible - difficult to understand; "the most incomprehensible thing about the universe is that it is comprehensible"- A. Einstein |
| 2. | puzzling - lacking clarity of meaning; causing confusion or perplexity; "sent confusing signals to Iraq"; "perplexing to someone who knew nothing about it"; "a puzzling statement" unclear - not clear to the mind; "the law itself was unclear on that point"; "the reason for their actions is unclear to this day" |
puzzling
adjective perplexing, baffling, bewildering, hard, involved, misleading, unclear, ambiguous, enigmatic, incomprehensible, mystifying, inexplicable, unaccountable, knotty, unfathomable, labyrinthine, full of surprises, abstruse, beyond you, oracular His letter poses a number of puzzling questions.
clear, easy, simple, obvious, plain, patent, evident, manifest, unmistakable, lucid, unequivocal, unambiguous, comprehensible, intelligible
clear, easy, simple, obvious, plain, patent, evident, manifest, unmistakable, lucid, unequivocal, unambiguous, comprehensible, intelligible
Translations
puzzling
adj → rätselhaft; story, mechanism, attitude, question → verwirrend; to be puzzling to somebody → jdm rätselhaft sein; the puzzling thing is that … → das Verblüffende an der Sache ist, dass …
puzzling [ˈpʌzlɪŋ] adj (question) → poco chiaro/a; (attitude, set of instructions) → incomprensibile
puzzling [ˈpʌzlɪŋ] adj (question) → poco chiaro/a; (attitude, set of instructions) → incomprensibile
puzzling [ˈpʌzlɪŋ] adj (question) → poco chiaro/a; (attitude, set of instructions) → incomprensibile
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