enigma

[uh-nig-muh]

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noun, plural e·nig·mas; Chiefly Archaic e·nig·ma·ta [uh-nig-muh-tuh] /əˈnɪg mə tə/.

a puzzling or inexplicable occurrence or situation: His disappearance is an enigma that has given rise to much speculation.

a person of puzzling or contradictory character: To me he has always been an enigma, one minute completely insensitive, the next moved to tears.

a saying, question, picture, etc., containing a hidden meaning; riddle.

(initial capital letter) a German-built enciphering machine developed for commercial use in the early 1920s and later adapted and appropriated by German and other Axis powers for military use through World War II.

Origin of enigma

1530–40; < Latin aenigma < Greek aínigma, equivalent to ainik- (stem of ainíssesthai to speak in riddles, derivative of aînos fable) + -ma noun suffix of result

Synonyms for enigma

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1. problem. See puzzle.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Related Words for enigma

conundrum, puzzle, riddle, mystification, perplexity, stickler, question, secret, cliffhanger, twister, puzzlement, cryptogram, parable, crux, puzzler, knot, why, bewilderment, problem, stumper

Examples from the Web for enigma

Contemporary Examples of enigma

As great as this feat was, an equally demanding test followed: to conceal from the Nazis that Enigma had been beaten.
The Castration of Alan Turing, Britain’s Code-Breaking WWII Hero
Clive Irving
November 29, 2014
The name is "an enigma even to me," Taylor says -- an appropriately mysterious moniker to make spiritual music under.
Leaps of Faith: Wrestling With Uncertainty and Finding Grace Through the Music of Hiss Golden Messenger
Howard Wolfson
March 2, 2014
Lil B is a mystery wrapped in an enigma wrapped in a song about Ellen Degeneres.
2 Chainz, Snoop Lion, and More Rappers in the Kitchen
Filipa Ioannou
August 12, 2013
The prodigious computer genius, who took his own life Friday at age 26, remains an enigma to those unaware of his many projects.
Aaron Swartz, 26, Programmer, Outspoken Advocate of Free Information
Nina Strochlic
January 14, 2013
Despite her many high-profile projects, Carine Roitfeld still manages to maintain a sense of enigma in the public mind.
Carine Roitfeld Talks About New Harper’s Bazaar Job at French Institute in New York
Misty White Sidell
November 6, 2012

Historical Examples of enigma

"Troilus and Cressida" has always been regarded as a sort of enigma.
The Man Shakespeare
Frank Harris
As for Jane Temple's view of this business, that remained an enigma.
Quaint Courtships
Various
Whether he will buy his fleet abroad or build it himself is at present an enigma.
Freeland
Theodor Hertzka
By the dignity of my profession, it must be so:—Now there's a solution to the enigma.
The Politician Out-Witted
Samuel Low
The Queen then condescended to explain the whole of the enigma to me.
Memoirs Of The Court Of Marie Antoinette, Queen Of France, Complete
Madame Campan

British Dictionary definitions for enigma

enigma

noun

a person, thing, or situation that is mysterious, puzzling, or ambiguous

Derived Formsenigmatic (ˌɛnɪɡˈmætɪk) or enigmatical, adjectiveenigmatically, adverb

Word Origin for enigma

C16: from Latin aenigma, from Greek ainigma, from ainissesthai to speak in riddles, from ainos fable, story

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for enigma

1580s, earlier enigmate (mid-15c.), from Latin aenigma "riddle," from Greek ainigma (plural ainigmata), from ainissesthai "speak obscurely, speak in riddles," from ainos "fable, riddle," of unknown origin.