puzzle

[ puhz-uh l ]

/ ˈpʌz əl /

SEE SYNONYMS FOR puzzle ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

a toy, problem, or other contrivance designed to amuse by presenting difficulties to be solved by ingenuity or patient effort.

something puzzling; a puzzling question, matter, or person.

a puzzled or perplexed condition; bewilderment.

a crossword puzzle: Did you do the puzzle in the newspaper today?

a jigsaw puzzle.

verb (used with object), puz·zled, puz·zling.

to put (someone) at a loss; mystify; confuse; baffle: Her attitude puzzles me.

to frustrate or confound, as the understanding; perplex: The problem puzzled him for weeks.

to exercise (oneself, one's brain, etc.) over some problem or matter.

Archaic. to make intricate or complicated.

verb (used without object), puz·zled, puz·zling.

to be perplexed or confused.

to ponder or study over some perplexing problem or matter.

Verb Phrases

puzzle out, to solve by careful study or effort: I was unable to puzzle out the message.

Words nearby puzzle

puy de sancy, puy lentil, puy-de-dôme, puyallup, puzo, puzzle, puzzle box, puzzle jug, puzzle out, puzzleheaded, puzzlement

Origin of puzzle

First recorded in 1585–95; origin uncertain

SYNONYMS FOR puzzle

2 Puzzle, riddle, enigma refer to something baffling or confusing that is to be solved. A puzzle is a question or problem, intricate enough to be perplexing to the mind; it is sometimes a contrivance made purposely perplexing to test one's ingenuity: a crossword puzzle; The reason for their behavior remains a puzzle. A riddle is an intentionally obscure statement or question, the meaning of or answer to which is to be arrived at only by guessing: the famous riddle of the Sphinx. Enigma, originally meaning riddle, now refers to some baffling problem with connotations of mysteriousness: He will always be an enigma to me.

6 confound.

SEE SYNONYMS FOR puzzle ON THESAURUS.COM

OTHER WORDS FROM puzzle

puz·zled·ly, adverbpuz·zled·ness, nounun·puz·zle, verb (used with object), un·puz·zled, un·puz·zling.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020

Examples from the Web for puzzle

For passengers, beyond the statistics lies a puzzle that has persisted for years.
Flying Coach Is the New Hell: How Airlines Engineer You Out of Room|Clive Irving|November 25, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Without access to the site, reporters, social media, and governments put together pieces of the puzzle.
MH17 Is the World’s First Open-Source Air Crash Investigation|Clive Irving|July 22, 2014|DAILY BEAST
But just picture a puzzle on the ground; say a puzzle of the Trade Center.
Is Synthetic Weed Feuling Yemen’s Terrorism?|Abby Haglage|May 23, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Police say that the final pieces of the puzzle were put together in the second week of March.
Hero or Criminal? James Brady, the WTC Ironworker Who Jumped Off the Building|Michael Daly|March 25, 2014|DAILY BEAST

Schindler said this has been a puzzle for the U.S. intelligence community since the days of the cold war.
Ex- CIA Chief: Why We Keep Getting Putin Wrong|Eli Lake, Noah Shachtman, Christopher Dickey|March 2, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Was this the deeper harder secret that Elsa sought to probe, this the puzzle to which she asked an answer?
The King's Mirror|Anthony Hope
Dr. Miller's brows were knit as he tried to puzzle out what had happened.
The Blue Ghost Mystery|Harold Leland Goodwin
After all, it is the ground birds that puzzle the human ologist.
A Rambler's lease|Bradford Torrey
Charley remembered something about a molecular lattice, but it didn't make any sense to him, and was only a puzzle.
Charley de Milo|Laurence Mark Janifer AKA Larry M. Harris
"You puzzle me utterly," he said, sitting up closer and staring at him.
Three More John Silence Stories|Algernon Blackwood

British Dictionary definitions for puzzle

puzzle

/ (ˈpʌzəl) /

verb

to perplex or be perplexed

(intr foll by over) to attempt the solution (of); ponder (about)he puzzled over her absence

(tr usually foll by out) to solve by mental efforthe puzzled out the meaning of the inscription

noun

a person or thing that puzzles

a problem that cannot be easily or readily solved

the state or condition of being puzzled

a toy, game, or question presenting a problem that requires skill or ingenuity for its solutionSee jigsaw puzzle, Chinese puzzle

Derived forms of puzzle

puzzling, adjective

Word Origin for puzzle

C16: of unknown origin

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

puzzle

noun

verb (used with object), puz·zled, puz·zling.

verb (used without object), puz·zled, puz·zling.

Verb Phrases

Words related to puzzle

Words nearby puzzle

Origin of puzzle

SYNONYMS FOR puzzle

OTHER WORDS FROM puzzle

Examples from the Web for puzzle

British Dictionary definitions for puzzle

verb

noun

Derived forms of puzzle

Word Origin for puzzle