puzzling

[ puhz-ling ]

/ ˈpʌz lɪŋ /

SEE SYNONYMS FOR puzzling ON THESAURUS.COM

adjective

confusing or baffling: a puzzling answer.

noun

the skill or pastime of constructing or working crossword or other puzzles.

Origin of puzzling

First recorded in 1590–1600; puzzle + -ing²

OTHER WORDS FROM puzzling

puz·zling·ly, adverb

Words nearby puzzling

puzzle jug, puzzle out, puzzleheaded, puzzlement, puzzler, puzzling, puzzolana, pva, pvc, pvp, pvr

Definition for puzzling (2 of 2)

puzzle

[ puhz-uh l ]

/ ˈpʌz əl /

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.

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, adverb puz·zled·ness, noun un·puz·zle, verb (used with object), un·puz·zled, un·puz·zling.

Example sentences from the Web for puzzling

Whether the lack of liberal involvement in the museum is the result of commission or omission, it is puzzling.

Communism's Victims Deserve a Museum |James Kirchick |August 25, 2014 |DAILY BEAST
First, it is puzzling that Facebook ever finds itself in a privacy fight at all.

You Can’t Have Facebook’s Best Privacy Policy |Dennis Kneale |May 23, 2014 |DAILY BEAST
During this time, physicians began to produce case studies of patients whose inability to read was puzzling.

Your Kid's Dyslexia Diagnosis Is B.S. |Julian Elliot |April 1, 2014 |DAILY BEAST
True Detective is foreboding, expansive, puzzling, sometimes infuriating, and lovely to look at.

‘True Detective,’ Obsessive-Compulsive Noir, and ‘Twin Peaks’ |Jimmy So |March 14, 2014 |DAILY BEAST

That last surprising and puzzling image sent everyone out into the lobby asking, “What was that about?”

‘Room 237’ Subject Bill Blakemore Writes About His ‘The Shining’ Theories |William Blakemore |March 29, 2013 |DAILY BEAST
These buildings are puzzling in a town where life seems so placid.

The Soul of John Brown |Stephen Graham
She did not waste time, however, in puzzling over the old servant man.

The Campfire Girls on the Field of Honor |Margaret Vandercook
That was puzzling and didn't fit in with Angela's deductions.

The Port of Adventure |Charles Norris Williamson and Alice Muriel Williamson
Fifteen years have I been puzzling at the same questions and have only guessed at a few of the answers.

Prose Idylls |Charles Kingsley
It was one of Laplace's highest triumphs to have found an explanation of this puzzling fact.

A Popular History of Astronomy During the Nineteenth Century |Agnes M. (Agnes Mary) Clerke

British Dictionary definitions for puzzling

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 effort he 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 solution See jigsaw puzzle, Chinese puzzle

Derived forms of puzzle

puzzling, adjective

Word Origin for puzzle

C16: of unknown origin

BROWSE DICTIONARY

Learning

puzzling

adjective

noun

Origin of puzzling

OTHER WORDS FROM puzzling

Words nearby puzzling

Definition for puzzling (2 of 2)

noun

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

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

Verb Phrases

Origin of puzzle

SYNONYMS FOR puzzle

OTHER WORDS FROM puzzle

Example sentences from the Web for puzzling

British Dictionary definitions for puzzling

verb

noun

Derived forms of puzzle

Word Origin for puzzle

BROWSE DICTIONARY

Learning

puzzling

adjective

noun

Origin of puzzling

OTHER WORDS FROM puzzling

Words nearby puzzling

Definition for puzzling (2 of 2)

noun

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

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

Verb Phrases

Origin of puzzle

SYNONYMS FOR puzzle

OTHER WORDS FROM puzzle

Words related to puzzling

Example sentences from the Web for puzzling

British Dictionary definitions for puzzling

verb

noun

Derived forms of puzzle

Word Origin for puzzle