1
as in complicating
to make complex or difficult
let's not perplex the issue further with irrelevant concerns
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in puzzling
to throw into a state of mental uncertainty
the question perplexed me
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in baffling
Related Words
Dissimilar Words
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
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Recent Examples of perplexing
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
See All Example Sentences for perplexing
Verb
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
See All Example Sentences for perplexing
Recent Examples of Synonyms for perplexing
Adjective
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And surely enough, the club’s focus soon turns away from their increasingly baffling cold case and onto a more pressing one.—
Manuel Betancourt,
Variety,
22 Aug. 2025
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This is undoubtedly one of the most baffling mysteries of all time, and there is a purist sense of absolute joy and satisfaction in solving it.—
Lance Eliot,
Forbes.com,
15 Aug. 2025
Verb
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Researchers are particularly focused on unraveling the puzzling interplay between gas content, magma pressure and lava flow dynamics.—
Dan Perry,
Newsweek,
3 Jan. 2025
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Almost two years into his ordeal, Gould learned of an initiative at the National Institutes of Health that focuses on solving the country’s most puzzling medical cases.—
Jason Liebowitz,
The Atlantic,
2 Jan. 2025
Adjective
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But the most frustrating point among them is the argument shared by several critics and a wider collection of the audience that the film doesn’t have a deeper meaning and is ultimately about nothing.—
Richard Newby,
HollywoodReporter,
12 Aug. 2025
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Few things are more frustrating than running into a stubborn knot while in the middle of a brushing.—
Annie Blackman,
Glamour,
11 Aug. 2025
Adjective
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The writing is bewildering, the rhyme scheme atrocious.—
Sloane Crosley,
New Yorker,
25 Aug. 2025
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For Garcia, who once thrived at the gym and took pride in her active routine, the sudden decline was bewildering—simple routines such as weight training and following a balanced diet had become overwhelming.—
Lucy Notarantonio,
MSNBC Newsweek,
21 Aug. 2025
Adjective
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Forecasters said the disorganized tropical wave is likely to pull together into a tropical depression near or just north of the easternmost Caribbean islands.—
Alex Harris,
Miami Herald,
20 Aug. 2025
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Here’s what forecasters are saying: System 1 A tropical wave over the central Atlantic is producing disorganized showers and thunderstorms.—
David Schutz,
Sun Sentinel,
20 Aug. 2025
Adjective
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With the second season now available to binge, Rodriguez spills to THR all about Jackie’s big return to Silver Falls, Jackie and Alex rekindling a relationship, and Jackie’s confused feelings about Cole, below.—
Lexy Perez,
HollywoodReporter,
29 Aug. 2025
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Whereas American Eagle and e.l.f. left their core customers feeling confused and disappointed.—
Katya Varbanova,
Fortune,
29 Aug. 2025
Adjective
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These are often signs that the company is unorganized, unclear on its hiring process, or not fully aligned internally.—
Adunola Adeshola,
Forbes.com,
29 May 2025
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Bathrooms that appear messy or unorganized often have products in them that don't belong in a bathroom.—
Abigail Wilt,
Southern Living,
20 June 2025
Adjective
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The cells have an ugly, disordered appearance under a microscope.—
Adam B. Kushner,
New York Times,
21 May 2025
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In more severe cases, this ongoing pattern may erode a parent’s relationship with food, leading to emotional or disordered eating that feels increasingly difficult to name, let alone break.—
Christine Michel Carter,
Parents,
20 May 2025
Cite this Entry
“Perplexing.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/perplexing. Accessed 4 Sep. 2025.
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