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Synonyms

perplexing

American

[per-plek-sing] / pərˈplɛk sɪŋ /

adjective

puzzling or bewildering; hard to understand, figure out, or solve.

One of the most perplexing aspects of owning a cat is trying to decipher its various body movements and meows.
The history of the universe is one of the most perplexing subjects of all time.

Other Word Forms

perplexingly adverb
unperplexing adjective

Etymology

Origin of perplexing

perplex ( def. ) + -ing ² ( def. )

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Some works are paradigmatic, some rather generic; the inclusion of others is perplexing.

From The Wall Street Journal

Though her film is singularly witty, Kramer refuses to shy away from tough subjects and perplexing contradictions.

From Salon

However, it has been “a little perplexing why stocks have sold off the way they have” for the most recent round of IPOs, he said.

From Barron's

However, it has been “a little perplexing why stocks have sold off the way they have” for the most recent round of IPOs, he said.

From Barron's

"At a time when the literacy levels are a concern why you would end a programme that you know is impactful and helps children with their reading seems a bit perplexing to us."

From BBC

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.