perplexing
Americanadjective
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of perplexing
Explanation
The adjective perplexing describes something it is confusing. Before you're fluent in Arabic, you may find the unfamiliar alphabet to be totally perplexing. The Latin root of perplexing is perplexus, which means involved, confused, or intricate. This root is also found in the verb perplex, or confuse. Problems are often described as perplexing, especially when several attempts to solve them are unsuccessful. You may have a perplexing decision to make, like where to go to college or whether to stay friends with a fun person who has disappointed you in some way.
Vocabulary lists containing perplexing
"Shooting an Elephant"
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Sam Shepard (1943-2017) Tribute List
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Robert Loggia (1930-2015) Tribute List
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Perplexing feelings of anxiety and doubts that she ever could be a fit mother for her baby crept into her head during pregnancy while living in her small one-bedroom apartment.
From Los Angeles Times • Jul. 2, 2021
Perplexing is a better descriptor, and in this context, a positive one.
From Salon • Feb. 23, 2017
A Casebook of Ingenious, Perplexing and Totally Satisfying Puzzles is available from the Guardian Bookshop and other retailers.
From The Guardian • Jan. 2, 2017
Perplexing some feminists and the justices then on the bench, several of her cases had male plaintiffs, including a widower who wanted to be the primary caregiver for his son.
From MSNBC • Apr. 28, 2015
Perplexing questions died within my breast, "Deep peace hath he who doeth lovingly My will, who loveth most, he loveth best," Came blown to me across the twilight sea.
From Poems by Holley, Marietta
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
