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perplexity

[ per-plek-si-tee ]
/ pərˈplɛk sɪ ti /
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noun, plural per·plex·i·ties.

the state of being perplexed; confusion; uncertainty.
something that perplexes: a case plagued with perplexities.
a tangled, involved, or confused condition or situation.

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RELATED WORDS

puzzlement, bewilderment, riddle, conundrum, puzzle, mystification, stickler, question, cliffhanger, charade, subtlety, occult, cryptogram, crux, puzzler, enigma, secrecy, poser, why, twister

Nearby words

  1. perphenazine,
  2. perpignan,
  3. perplex,
  4. perplexed,
  5. perplexing,
  6. perquisite,
  7. perrault,
  8. perrault, charles,
  9. perrault, claude,
  10. perret

Origin of perplexity

1350–1400; Middle English perplexite < Old French < Late Latin perplexitās, equivalent to Latin perplex(us) (see perplexed) + -itās -ity
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for perplexity

British Dictionary definitions for perplexity

perplexity

/ (pəˈplɛksɪtɪ) /

noun plural -ties

the state of being perplexed
the state of being intricate or complicated
something that perplexes
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 perplexity

perplexity

n.

c.1300, "bewilderment," from Old French perplexite "confusion, perplexity," from Late Latin perplexitatem (nominative perplexitas), from Latin perplexus "confused, involved, interwoven," from per- "completely" + plexus "entangled," past participle of plectere "to twine" (see complex (adj.)). From 1590s as "something that causes perplexity."

Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper