as in to perplex
to throw into a state of mental uncertainty
we were mystified by the sudden changes in the tax code
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in perplexing
Related Words
Dissimilar Words
as in baffling
to throw into a state of mental uncertainty
we were mystified by the sudden changes in the tax code
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of mystify
Michael H Gavshon, CBS News, 12 Apr. 2026
Haotong Li of China shot 69 and was four behind, still mystified by topping a fairway metal that raced into the pond in front of the 15th green.
—Doug Ferguson, Chicago Tribune, 12 Apr. 2026
Bill Madden, New York Daily News, 14 Mar. 2026
The outlandish and mystifying story received nearly wall-to-wall coverage, but the plane was never found.
—Kelly Lawler, USA Today, 19 Feb. 2026
Taijuan Moorman, USA Today, 31 Mar. 2026
The idea that these enormities wouldn’t have negative electoral ramifications is mystifying.
—Chicago Tribune, 27 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for mystify
Verb
When great white sharks started vanishing from the coastal waters around Cape Town, South Africa, some scientists and conservationists were mystified.
—Michael H Gavshon, CBS News, 12 Apr. 2026
Haotong Li of China shot 69 and was four behind, still mystified by topping a fairway metal that raced into the pond in front of the 15th green.
—Doug Ferguson, Chicago Tribune, 12 Apr. 2026
Adjective
The Mets’ continual snub of Hall of Famer Carter, a pivotal player in the team’s history as the first building block of the 1986 championship club, is both mystifying and downright embarrassing.
—Bill Madden, New York Daily News, 14 Mar. 2026
The outlandish and mystifying story received nearly wall-to-wall coverage, but the plane was never found.
—Kelly Lawler, USA Today, 19 Feb. 2026
Verb
There are few people in the world who know the mystifying experience of being a child star as well as Brandy.
—Taijuan Moorman, USA Today, 31 Mar. 2026
The idea that these enormities wouldn’t have negative electoral ramifications is mystifying.
—Chicago Tribune, 27 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for mystify
Recent Examples of Synonyms for mystify
Adjective
-
The whole situation was perplexing.—
Jared Weiss,
New York Times,
27 Apr. 2026
-
Our universe is full of mysteries, but few are as perplexing as the dark, tiny galaxies that hover around larger ones like the Milky Way.—
Paul Sutter,
Space.com,
20 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
That number, and a whole lot of others, were just baffling.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
1 May 2026
-
One giant leap for actor/director Andy Serkis’ baffling use of free will.—
Alison Foreman,
IndieWire,
30 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
However, the Echoes From the Past creators made the puzzling and terrifying artistic choice to have VR visitors ride outside the sub during the descent.—
Jordan Runtagh,
PEOPLE,
20 Apr. 2026
-
Everyone already knows about the Red Sox’s struggles, especially at the plate, but the Mariners and Tigers’ early slumps have been equally puzzling.—
Mac Cerullo,
Boston Herald,
12 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
Grief is one of the most confounding aspects of the human experience.—
Aramide Tinubu,
Variety,
17 Apr. 2026
-
In 2021, one year into D’Amaro’s tenure and following COVID shutdowns, Disney did away with FastPass and introduced a confounding and very costly series of pay-to-skip passes, which require timing advanced booking of limited slots in these formerly free-to-enter shorter lines.—
Rebecca Alter,
Vulture,
5 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
La beauté bizarre of the Lobster Boy is decadent.—
Olivia Kan-Sperling,
Artforum,
2 May 2026
-
Fabianne Therese plays a young woman on a hike in the woods with her boyfriend (Seann William Scott) who runs afoul of a bizarre, imposing figure (pro wrestler Max the Impaler) with a porcelain doll mask intent on raising her as a child.—
Brian Truitt,
USA Today,
1 May 2026
Adjective
-
The truck had been at the head of a column of seven rescue vehicles, all of which had received clearance from the tower to cross Runway 4 at Taxiway D and head toward a United Airlines flight that was evacuating due to a strange odor onboard.—
Evan Simko-Bednarski,
New York Daily News,
28 Apr. 2026
-
On World Rhythms, Lockwood trusts the listener to hear the arc of its noises, to trace their emergence and disappearance, their strange, seductive confluence.—
Joshua Minsoo Kim,
Pitchfork,
28 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
For decades, getting the most out of the terminal required that traders memorized an arcane and bewildering set of three- and four-letter keyboard commands and shortcuts, each of which called up a different feature, function, or dataset.—
Jeremy Kahn,
Fortune,
28 Apr. 2026
-
Right now, the process is bewildering, involving clicking through multiple pages and inputting data.—
Yehiel Kyle Israel,
Sun Sentinel,
15 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
Something shocking happens on Jeon-Gi’s last day at the camp.—
Cressida Leyshon,
New Yorker,
3 May 2026
-
Incredibly shocking moment in the run-up to the race as Great White is scratched.—
Kyle Feldscher,
CNN Money,
2 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Mystify.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/mystify. Accessed 8 May. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
