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puzzle - Meaning and Examples

Meaning of 'puzzle' (Webster Dictionary)

1 . Puzzle [ v.]
- Something which perplexes or embarrasses; especially, a toy or a problem contrived for testing ingenuity; also, something exhibiting marvelous skill in making.
- The state of being puzzled; perplexity; as, to be in a puzzle.
2 . Puzzle [ v. i.]
- To be bewildered, or perplexed.
- To work, as at a puzzle; as, to puzzle over a problem.
3 . Puzzle [ v. t.]
- To perplex; to confuse; to embarrass; to put to a stand; to nonplus.
- To make intricate; to entangle.
- To solve by ingenuity, as a puzzle; -- followed by out; as, to puzzle out a mystery.

Meaning of 'puzzle' (Princeton's WordNet)

1 . puzzle [ n]
Meaning (1):
- a particularly baffling problem that is said to have a correct solution
Example in sentence:
  • he loved to solve chessmate puzzles;
  • that's a real puzzler
2 . puzzle [ v]
Meaning (2):
- be a mystery or bewildering to
Example in sentence:
  • a vexing problem;
  • Got me--I don't know the answer!;
  • This beats me!;
  • This question really stuck me
Meaning (3):
- be uncertain about; think about without fully understanding or being able to decide
Example in sentence:
  • We puzzled over her sudden departure

Nearby Words:

puzzel puzzier puzzle-headed puzzled puzzledom puzzlement puzzling puzzlingly puzzolan puzzolana

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