SYNONYMS | EXAMPLES | WORD ORIGIN adjective Also cryp·ti·cal. mysterious in meaning; puzzling; ambiguous: a cryptic message.
abrupt; terse; short: a cryptic note.
secret; occult: a cryptic writing.
involving or using cipher, code, etc.
Zoology fitted for concealing; serving to camouflage.
noun a cryptogram, especially one designed as a puzzle.
Origin of cryptic 1595–1605; <
Late Latin crypticus <
Greek kryptikós hidden. See
crypt ,
-ic Related forms cryp·ti·cal·ly , adverb non·cryp·tic , adjective non·cryp·ti·cal , adjective non·cryp·ti·cal·ly , adverb Synonyms for cryptic 1 .
enigmatic , perplexing.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019
Related Words for cryptic enigmatic ,
ambiguous ,
veiled ,
equivocal ,
strange ,
arcane ,
mysterious ,
incomprehensible ,
vague ,
abstruse ,
apocryphal ,
cabalistic ,
dark ,
esoteric ,
evasive ,
hidden ,
inexplicable ,
murky ,
mystic ,
mystical Examples from the Web for cryptic Contemporary Examples of cryptic Even as early as December 4, remarks from inside the bubble were cryptic and frightened.
He was like some cryptic English-Chekhovian figure, playing out the last days of his private, imagined Raj.
Kurant has crafted a new, cryptic narrative in which the three redundant characters come together in a wrecking yard.
I also think Damian Lewis's performance was stellar in episode after episode: vivid, cryptic , and (against all odds) believable.
She wants an explanation of the cryptic glares and whispers, but they disappear.
Historical Examples of cryptic "A Wade check is always honored," was his cryptic assertion.
Dust Mr. and Mrs. Haldeman-Julius
When he spoke, his words were cryptic to all those in the room.
"Conditions have not been wholly favorable," was the cryptic reply.
"We-all'll come 'long when we's bid," was Jess' cryptic retort.
"I believe in the belief of the guides," was my cryptic rejoinder.
British Dictionary definitions for cryptic adjective hidden; secret; occult
(esp of comments, sayings, etc) obscure in meaning
(of the coloration of animals) tending to conceal by disguising or camouflaging the shape
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Derived Forms cryptically , adverb Word Origin for cryptic C17: from Late Latin crypticus, from Greek kruptikos, from kruptos concealed; see crypt
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
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Word Origin and History for cryptic adj. 1630s, "hidden, occult, mystical," from Late Latin crypticus , from Greek kryptikos "fit for concealing," from kryptos "hidden" (see crypt ). Meaning "mysterious, enigmatic" is recorded from 1920. Related: Cryptically .
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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
n. Hidden or concealed.
Tending to conceal or camouflage, as the coloring of an animal.
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The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
