• enPR: pŭzʹəl, IPA: /ˈpʌzəl/

puzzle (plural puzzles)

1. Anything that is difficult to understand or make sense of.

   Where he went after he left the house is a puzzle.

2. A game for one or more people that is more or less difficult to work out or complete.
3. A crossword puzzle.
4. A jigsaw puzzle.
5. A riddle.
6. (archaic) Something made with marvellous skill; something of ingenious construction.
7. The state of being puzzled; perplexity.

   to be in a puzzle

• (anything difficult to understand or make sense of) anybody's guess, anyone's guess, conundrum, enigma, mystery
• (game for one person) brain-teaser, poser
• (crossword puzzle) crossword, crossword puzzle
• (jigsaw puzzle): jigsaw, jigsaw puzzle
• (riddle) guessing game, riddle

• French: mystère, énigme
• German: Rätsel
• Italian: mistero, rompicapo
• Portuguese: enigma
• Russian: зага́дка
• Spanish: rompecabezas

• French: puzzle, casse-tête, jeu de patience
• German: Puzzle, Geduldspiel, Geduldsspiel
• Italian: rompicapo
• Portuguese: desafio
• Russian: головоло́мка
• Spanish: rompecabezas, puzle

• French: devinette
• German: Rätsel
• Italian: indovinello
• Portuguese: charada, enigma
• Russian: зага́дка
• Spanish: enigma

puzzle (puzzles, present participle puzzling; past and past participle puzzled)

1. (transitive) To perplex (someone).

   • A very shrewd disputant in those points is dexterous in puzzling others, if they be not thoroughpaced speculators in those great theories.

   • He is perpetually puzzled and perplexed amidst his own blunders.

2. (intransitive) To think long and carefully, in bewilderment.

   We puzzled over the curious-shaped lock, but were unable to discover how the key should be inserted.

3. (transitive) To make intricate; to entangle.
   • 1713, Joseph Addison, Cato, published 1712, [Act 1, scene 1]:

     The ways of Heav'n are dark and intricate, / Puzzled in mazes, and perplex'd with error.

   • They disentangle from the puzzled skein.

• See also Thesaurus:confuse

• German: durcheinander bringen, verwirren
• Portuguese: confundir, desconcertar, intrigar
• Spanish: intrigar, dejar perplejo, desconcertar

• puzzlement