jigsaw puzzle

American  

[jig-saw puhz-uhl] / ˈdʒɪgˌsɔ ˌpʌz əl /

noun

1. Also called picture puzzle.  a set of irregularly cut pieces of pasteboard, wood, or the like that form a picture or design when fitted together.

2. any complex, confusing situation, condition, or item, as one composed of seemingly diverse or unrelated elements.

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jigsaw puzzle British  

noun

1. a puzzle in which the player has to reassemble a picture that has been mounted on a wooden or cardboard base and cut into a large number of irregularly shaped interlocking pieces

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Etymology

Origin of jigsaw puzzle

First recorded in 1905–10

Example Sentences

An older sister turns to sewing her bin of fabric scraps into a quilt top or putting together a jigsaw puzzle to get her dopamine.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 12, 2026

It's a giant and complicated jigsaw puzzle of 130 separate track panels - not something that can be done when trains are roaring up and down.

From BBC • Dec. 21, 2025

"This incident is more complex than a 10,000-piece jigsaw puzzle," Leung told AFP.

From Barron's • Dec. 2, 2025

But standing in the way of such a hybrid plan is a jigsaw puzzle of land rights and owners’ agendas, some known, others tightly guarded.

From Los Angeles Times • Nov. 9, 2025

Kingshaw stood up, tipping the jigsaw puzzle on to the floor in his agitation.

From "I'm the King of the Castle" by Susan Hill