Definition of MYSTIFY

Examples of mystify in a Sentence

The cause of the disease mystified doctors for many years. The magician has been mystifying his audiences for years with his amazing tricks.

Recent Examples on the Web

On Wednesday, several justices appeared mystified by that Indiana opinion; and the state solicitor general, Thomas Fisher, spent little time defending it. — Jess Bravin, WSJ, "Supreme Court Poised to Rule Against Excessive State Fines," 28 Nov. 2018 All the remotes mystify even the people who set the systems up. — Alison Sider, WSJ, "Hey, Mom, Why Do You Have Five TV Remotes?," 26 Nov. 2018 Given the way the A’s Daniel Mengden mystified the White Sox bats Monday, that was enough. — John Hickey, chicagotribune.com, "Reynaldo Lopez strikes out 10 but gets no offensive support in White Sox's 8-1 loss to A's," 17 Apr. 2018 Cybersecurity experts and members of Congress said they were mystified by the move, though some suggested Mr. Bolton did not want any competitive power centers emerging inside the national security apparatus. — Nicole Perlroth, New York Times, "White House Eliminates Cybersecurity Coordinator Role," 15 May 2018 Their flirtation with isolation ball in crucial moments mystified a fanbase accustomed to non-stop onslaughts of ball movement and shot-making. — Ben Golliver, SI.com, "Warriors' Greatness May Annoy Some but They Aren't Going Anywhere," 9 June 2018 In the aftermath was the haunting question that mystified anyone who is a parent, as well as those who knew the families best: How could the conspirators have done this to their own children? — New York Times, "At the Heart of Indonesia Terror Attacks, a Well-Liked Family," 18 May 2018 The reason Tiger is mystified by his putting struggles is the same reason countless other golfers are baffled by their own putting woes, said short-game guru Dave Pelz. — Josh Peter, USA TODAY, "Tiger Woods needs a reality check after latest putting woes at U.S. Open," 15 June 2018 The video, directed by Dave Meyers, was released just hours after the single, and is filled with can't miss moments and imageries that left fans mystified. — Lauren Rearick, Teen Vogue, "Ariana Grande's "God Is a Woman" Music Video Is Full of Vagina References," 13 July 2018

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History and Etymology for mystify

borrowed from French mystifier "to hoodwink, dupe," from Greek mýstēs "person initiated (into a religious cult)" + French -ifier -ify — more at mystic entry 1

Note: French mystifier was used by 18th-century literati in the context of elaborate practical jokes in which some pseudo-magical procedure would be performed on the subject of the joke as a sort of mock initiation. Such a joke is described by the playwright Charles-Simon Favart (1710-92) in a letter of June 24, 1760, apparently the earliest known occurrence of the verb: one Poinsinet is persuaded that the application of a magic ointment has made him invisible and he then becomes the butt of various jests. According to Favart, Poinsinet was dubbed le mystifié (presumably, "one made an inititate") as a result of the jests, which he refers to collectively as la mystification. (See Mémoires et correspondances littéraires, dramatiques et anecdotiques de C.S. Favart, tome 1, Paris, 1808, p. 50-52.) The meaning of the English word has been influenced by mystery entry 1, mystical, etc.

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