puzzle

puzzle
—puzzledly, adv. —puzzledness, n.
/puz"euhl/, n., v., puzzled, puzzling.
n.
1. a toy, problem, or other contrivance designed to amuse by presenting difficulties to be solved by ingenuity or patient effort.
2. something puzzling; a puzzling question, matter, or person.
3. a puzzled or perplexed condition; bewilderment.
4. a crossword puzzle: Did you do the puzzle in the newspaper today?
5. a jigsaw puzzle.
v.t.
6. to put (someone) at a loss; mystify; confuse; baffle: Her attitude puzzles me.
7. to frustrate or confound, as the understanding; perplex: The problem puzzled him for weeks.
8. to exercise (oneself, one's brain, etc.) over some problem or matter.
9. Archaic. to make intricate or complicated.
v.i.
10. to be perplexed or confused.
11. to ponder or study over some perplexing problem or matter.
12. puzzle out, to solve by careful study or effort: I was unable to puzzle out the message.
[1585-95; orig. uncert.]
Syn. 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.

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Universalium. 2010.

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  • puzzle — [ pɶzl; pɶzɶl ] n. m. • 1909; mot angl. , de to puzzle « embarrasser » 1 ♦ Jeu de patience composé d éléments à assembler pour reconstituer un dessin. ⇒région. casse tête. Faire un puzzle. 2 ♦ Fig. Multiplicité d éléments qu un raisonnement… …   Encyclopédie Universelle

  • puzzle — s.n. Joc de perspicacitate care constă în îmbinarea unor piese pentru a reconstitui un obiect, o imagine. [pr.: pazl] – cuv. engl. Trimis de ana zecheru, 27.04.2004. Sursa: DEX 98  PUZZLE [pr.: pazl] n. Joc care constă în capacitatea de a îmbina …   Dicționar Român

  • Puzzle — Saltar a navegación, búsqueda Un puzzle o puzle puede referirse a: Un rompecabezas, un juego en el que hay que armar una figura. Un crucigrama o juego de palabras cruzadas. Un puzzle compacto es un autodefinido o crucigrama compacto. Un acertijo …   Wikipedia Español

  • puzzle# — puzzle vb Puzzle, perplex, mystify, bewilder, distract, nonplus, confound, dumbfound are comparable when they mean to disturb and baffle mentally or throw into mental confusion. The first three words express various mental reactions to what is… …   New Dictionary of Synonyms

  • puzzle — (del inglés; pronunciamos puzle ) sustantivo masculino 1. Juego que consiste en reconstruir una figura dividida en piezas irregulares planas, combinando éstas después de haberlas desordenado: hacer un puzzle, un puzzle de mil piezas. Sinónimo:… …   Diccionario Salamanca de la Lengua Española

  • puzzle — [puz′əl] vt. puzzled, puzzling [ME * poselen (inferred < pp. poselet), to bewilder, confuse < ?] to perplex; confuse; bewilder; nonplus vi. 1. to be perplexed, etc. 2. to exercise one s mind, as over the solution of a problem n. 1. the… …   English World dictionary

  • Puzzle — Puz zle, v. i. 1. To be bewildered, or perplexed. [1913 Webster] A puzzling fool, that heeds nothing. L Estrange. [1913 Webster] 2. To work, as at a puzzle; as, to puzzle over a problem. [1913 Webster] …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • puzzle — puz zle, v. t. [imp. & p. p. {puzzled} (p[u^]z z ld); p. pr. & vb. n. {puzzling} (p[u^]z zl[i^]ng).] 1. To perplex; to confuse; to embarrass; to put to a stand; to nonplus. [1913 Webster] A very shrewd disputant in those points is dexterous in… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • Puzzle — Sn (ein aus Einzelteilen zusammenzusetzendes Bild) erw. fach. (20. Jh.) Entlehnung. Entlehnt aus ne. (jigsaw) puzzle, letzteres eigentlich Verwirrung .    Ebenso nndl. puzzel, nfrz. puzzle, nschw. pussel. ✎ Rey Debove/Gagnon (1988), 805f.;… …   Etymologisches Wörterbuch der deutschen sprache

  • Puzzle — Puzzle: Die Bezeichnung für das Geduldsspiel, bei dem aus vielen Einzelteilen ein Bild zusammenzusetzen ist, wurde im 20. Jh. aus engl. puzzle »Verwirrung; Rätsel, Geduldsspiel« entlehnt, dessen weitere Herkunft dunkel ist. – Abl.: puzzeln »ein… …   Das Herkunftswörterbuch

  • puzzle — puz zle (p[u^]z z l), n. [For opposal, in the sense of problem. See {Oppose}, {Pose}, v.] 1. Something which perplexes or embarrasses; especially, a toy or a problem contrived for testing ingenuity; also, something exhibiting marvelous skill in… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

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