puzzle
Forms
- Plural
- puzzles
- present (v1)
- puzzle
- past (v2)
- puzzled
- past participle (v3)
- puzzled
- present participle
- puzzling
- 3rd person singular
- puzzles
Definitions
1.A thing such as a complicated matter or a problem which is difficult to make sense of or understand; also, a person who is difficult to make sense of or understand; an enigma.
- Where he went after he left the house is a puzzle.
- He went away on the word, leaving me with a new mystery to think of, a new puzzle to grapple with.
- He is a puzzle to the servants, who are fearful of being too obsequious, or not civil enough, to him.
2.Often preceded by a descriptive word: a game or toy, or a problem, requiring some effort to complete or work out, which is intended as a pastime and/or to test one's mental ability.
3.The state of feeling confused or mystified because one cannot understand a complicated matter, a problem, etc.; bewilderment, confusion; (countable) often in in a puzzle: an instance of this.
- My lady, your ladyship. It sounds very strange, and as if it was not natural. I never thought of it before; but, now you have named it, I am all in a puzzle.
- She stopt, felt herself getting into a puzzle, and could not be prevailed on to add another word, not by dint of several minutes of supplication and waiting.
1.To cause (oneself or someone, or their mind, etc.) to feel confused or mystified because they cannot understand a complicated matter, a problem, etc.; to confuse, to mystify, to perplex.
- When it comes to God's existence, I'm not an atheist and I'm not an agnostic. I'm an acrostic. The whole thing puzzles me.
- Still, this matter of the sails much puzzleth me, and I have often felt a desire to go from one port to another, by sea, in order to witness it.
- You're alone all the time / Does it ever puzzle you? / Have you asked why you seem to fall in love, out again? / Do you ever really love, or just pretend?
2.To use (one's brain or mind) to try to work out a complicated matter, a problem, etc.; also, to try to work out (a complicated matter, a problem, etc.).
- Every time a woman wants to do well by her darling, she puzzles her brain to cipher out some scheme for getting it into my hands.
- Though I was angry with old Cotter for alluding to me as a child I puzzled my head to extract meaning from his unfinished sentences.
3.Often followed by about, over, or upon: to feel confused or mystified because one cannot understand a complicated matter, a problem, etc.
4.Often followed by about, over, or or upon: to think deeply in bewilderment to try to work out a complicated matter, a problem, etc.
- We puzzled over the curious-shaped lock, but were unable to discover how the key should be inserted.
Frequency
Overall
Rare· #4652
By learning goal
- Everyday conversation
- Rare
- General reading & writing
- Rare
- Academic
- Rare
- Literature
- Rare
Etymology
The verb, of uncertain origin, is attested first. Apparently cognate with Scots pousle, pouzle, poozle (“to trifle; poke or potter around aimlessly; search about with uncertainty”), Saterland Frisian puzelje (“to work hard and continuously”), West Frisian peuzelje (“to trifle, work slowly; eat slowly and daintifully, snack”), Dutch peuzelen (“to perform insignificant work, dawdle; pick at, eat with relish in small pieces, snack”), German Low German pusseln (“to tinker, fiddle; trifle”) and pöseln (“to work hard, toil; to slave away; suffer at work; work slowly and ineffectively”), German posseln, bosseln (“to perform trivial work, tinker”), Danish pusle (“to busy oneself with light work or chores; to be occupied with a task requiring ingenuity, care, and patience; to tinker”), Swedish pyssla (“to do light work; tinker; putter or potter around”), Norwegian Nynorsk pusla, putla (“to potter about”), Faroese putla (“to trifle; potter about; do one's work slowly; be dilatory”), Faroese puss (“damage, trick”).