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puzzle

[puhz-uh l]
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noun
  1. a toy, problem, or other contrivance designed to amuse by presenting difficulties to be solved by ingenuity or patient effort.
  2. something puzzling; a puzzling question, matter, or person.
  3. a puzzled or perplexed condition; bewilderment.
  4. a crossword puzzle: Did you do the puzzle in the newspaper today?
  5. a jigsaw puzzle.
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verb (used with object), puz·zled, puz·zling.
  1. to put (someone) at a loss; mystify; confuse; baffle: Her attitude puzzles me.
  2. to frustrate or confound, as the understanding; perplex: The problem puzzled him for weeks.
  3. to exercise (oneself, one's brain, etc.) over some problem or matter.
  4. Archaic. to make intricate or complicated.
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verb (used without object), puz·zled, puz·zling.
  1. to be perplexed or confused.
  2. to ponder or study over some perplexing problem or matter.
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Verb Phrases
  1. puzzle out, to solve by careful study or effort: I was unable to puzzle out the message.
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Origin of puzzle

First recorded in 1585–95; origin uncertain
Related formspuz·zled·ly, adverbpuz·zled·ness, nounun·puz·zle, verb (used with object), un·puz·zled, un·puz·zling.

Synonyms

See more synonyms for puzzle on Thesaurus.com
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.
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for puzzle

Contemporary Examples

Historical Examples

  • He had discovered years before that he was sometimes able thus to puzzle her momentarily.

    The Spenders

    Harry Leon Wilson

  • There was no reasoning which could help him in the midst of that puzzle.

  • We see that the puzzle about identity proves at last to be of Grecian origin.

  • There was another consideration, however, which at this time was rather a puzzle.

  • He made for his own woods, and sat down to try to puzzle it out.

    The Biography of a Grizzly

    Ernest Seton-Thompson

British Dictionary definitions for puzzle

puzzle

verb
  1. to perplex or be perplexed
  2. (intr foll by over) to attempt the solution (of); ponder (about)he puzzled over her absence
  3. (tr usually foll by out) to solve by mental efforthe puzzled out the meaning of the inscription
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noun
  1. a person or thing that puzzles
  2. a problem that cannot be easily or readily solved
  3. the state or condition of being puzzled
  4. a toy, game, or question presenting a problem that requires skill or ingenuity for its solutionSee jigsaw puzzle, Chinese puzzle
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Derived Formspuzzling, adjective

Word Origin

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

Word Origin and History for puzzle

v.

1590s, pusle "bewilder, confound," possibly frequentative of pose (v.) in obsolete sense of "perplex" (cf. nuzzle from nose). Related: Puzzled; puzzling.

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n.

c.1600, "state of being puzzled," from puzzle (v.); meaning "perplexing question" is from 1650s; that of "a toy contrived to test one's ingenuity" is from 1814.

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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper