mysterious
adjective
mys·te·ri·ous
mi-ˈstir-ē-əs 
1
a
: of, relating to, or constituting mystery
the mysterious ways of God
b
: exciting wonder, curiosity, or surprise while baffling efforts to comprehend or identify : mystifying
heard a mysterious noise
a mysterious stranger
a mysterious plane crash
a mysterious illness
2
: stirred by or attracted to the inexplicable
… to help a mysterious wizard … ward off the end of the world …—
Robert Houston
Robert Houston
mysteriousness
noun
Synonyms of mysterious
Examples of mysterious in a Sentence
the mysterious ways of nature
We heard a mysterious noise outside our tent.
He died under mysterious circumstances.
A mysterious illness has been spreading through the city.
There's something mysterious about that old woman.
Her behavior was very mysterious.
Recent Examples on the Web
With its mix of Norse mythology, eighteenth-century cryptozoology, nineteenth-century science fiction, and the biblical apocalypse, the poem tells of something tragic and mysterious lying just beyond the bounds of human knowing.
—Kathryn Hughes, The New York Review of Books, 4 Apr. 2026
The two women’s powerful, mysterious bond is sketched in sharp yet subtle dramatic strokes that are all the more thrilling for their breathless rapidity.
—Richard Brody, New Yorker, 3 Apr. 2026
Grant Holmes and Bryce Elder are up next for the Braves, with the mysterious fifth spot in the rotation to follow Sunday … perhaps in the form of Martín Pérez.
—Tyler Estep, AJC.com, 3 Apr. 2026
June Farrow, on a quest to solve her mother’s disappearance, travels back to 1951 through a mysterious door.
—Literary Hub, 3 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for mysterious
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Kathryn Hughes, The New York Review of Books, 4 Apr. 2026
The two women’s powerful, mysterious bond is sketched in sharp yet subtle dramatic strokes that are all the more thrilling for their breathless rapidity.
—Richard Brody, New Yorker, 3 Apr. 2026
Grant Holmes and Bryce Elder are up next for the Braves, with the mysterious fifth spot in the rotation to follow Sunday … perhaps in the form of Martín Pérez.
—Tyler Estep, AJC.com, 3 Apr. 2026
June Farrow, on a quest to solve her mother’s disappearance, travels back to 1951 through a mysterious door.
—Literary Hub, 3 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for mysterious
Cite this Entry
“Mysterious.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/mysterious. Accessed 4 Apr. 2026.
Copy CitationKids Definition
mysterious
adjective
mys·te·ri·ous
mis-ˈtir-ē-əs
: containing, suggesting, or presenting a mystery
mysterious noises
also
: difficult or impossible to understand
the mysterious ways of nature
mysteriously
adverb
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