perplexing

adjective

per·​plex·​ing pər-ˈplek-siŋ 

: difficult to understand : causing confusion

A perplexing feature of insomnia is that people seem to overestimate their sleep loss.

—Rita L. Atkinson et al.

Chronic acalculous biliary disorders are among the most perplexing diagnostic and therapeutic challenges in medicine.

—Richard M. Gore

A perplexing problem, often encountered by cat owners, is that of a refusal to use the litterbox after using it for years in the past.

—Susan L. Mathews

perplexingly adverb

a perplexingly complex problem

This was all that I could observe of her in the dim light and under the perplexingly strange circumstances of our meeting.

—Wilkie Collins

Examples of perplexing in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Less than two weeks ago, the Angels made the perplexing decision not to sell high on any of their veterans at the trade deadline. —Jackson Roberts, MSNBC Newsweek, 12 Aug. 2025

That’s a perplexing combination for an offense led by the best quarterback in football, and even more so for an offense that has been trained to play move-the-chains football. —Sam McDowell 6, Kansas City Star, 6 Aug. 2025

Even more perplexing were the duplicate room and board charges. —Angela Palermo, Idaho Statesman, 31 July 2025

How the company hasn't bought AI start-up Anthropic is downright perplexing, to use the word of the day. —Jim Cramer, CNBC, 4 Aug. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1585, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for perplexing

• annexing
• complexing
• flexing
• sexing
• vexing
• multiplexing