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 with blood sacrifices.—
Robert Houston
Robert Houston
mysteriousness
noun
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
Nowadays the ghosts of the hotel’s original owner, his wife, and a mysterious child are said to haunt the property.
—Sophie Friedman, AFAR Media, 22 Oct. 2025
The French fright fest features a very pregnant widow (Alysson Paradis) who sees her home invaded on Christmas Eve by a mysterious woman in black (Beatrice Dalle) dead set on cutting her baby out with some scissors.
—Brian Truitt, USA Today, 21 Oct. 2025
The short unravels the mysterious aftermath of young boys whose lives have been abruptly taken.
—Georg Szalai, HollywoodReporter, 21 Oct. 2025
The letter and its mysterious reply were first shared on Reddit by the girl’s parent under the username u/normal-ad2587 on October 13.
—Melissa Fleur Afshar, MSNBC Newsweek, 21 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for mysterious
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Sophie Friedman, AFAR Media, 22 Oct. 2025
The French fright fest features a very pregnant widow (Alysson Paradis) who sees her home invaded on Christmas Eve by a mysterious woman in black (Beatrice Dalle) dead set on cutting her baby out with some scissors.
—Brian Truitt, USA Today, 21 Oct. 2025
The short unravels the mysterious aftermath of young boys whose lives have been abruptly taken.
—Georg Szalai, HollywoodReporter, 21 Oct. 2025
The letter and its mysterious reply were first shared on Reddit by the girl’s parent under the username u/normal-ad2587 on October 13.
—Melissa Fleur Afshar, MSNBC Newsweek, 21 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for mysterious
Cite this Entry
“Mysterious.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/mysterious. Accessed 25 Oct. 2025.
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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