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
Once an unnamed boy (Naru Asanuma) shows up and the Lost Man realizes that this mysterious kid is not an anomaly, Exit 8 begins to adds elements of pathos and paternal anxiety to its free-floating paranoia.
—David Fear, Rolling Stone, 10 Apr. 2026
Wang Zhao | Afp | Getty Images A mysterious AI video model that has ascended global leaderboards has been confirmed as a project from Chinese tech giant Alibaba, in a development that could boost the company's artificial intelligence ambitions.
—Dylan Butts, CNBC, 10 Apr. 2026
To reject any anomaly, anything mysterious or unusual, Kawamura suggests, is to succumb to a soul-crushing, self-serving conformity—and to withhold possibilities of decency, discovery, and love that make any game worth playing, life very much included.
—Justin Chang, New Yorker, 10 Apr. 2026
But Neptune also blurs lines, which is why its influence can feel mysterious or even confusing at times.
—Valerie Mesa, PEOPLE, 10 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for mysterious
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David Fear, Rolling Stone, 10 Apr. 2026
Wang Zhao | Afp | Getty Images A mysterious AI video model that has ascended global leaderboards has been confirmed as a project from Chinese tech giant Alibaba, in a development that could boost the company's artificial intelligence ambitions.
—Dylan Butts, CNBC, 10 Apr. 2026
To reject any anomaly, anything mysterious or unusual, Kawamura suggests, is to succumb to a soul-crushing, self-serving conformity—and to withhold possibilities of decency, discovery, and love that make any game worth playing, life very much included.
—Justin Chang, New Yorker, 10 Apr. 2026
But Neptune also blurs lines, which is why its influence can feel mysterious or even confusing at times.
—Valerie Mesa, PEOPLE, 10 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 13 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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