variants
also nonplusing
as in perplexing
Related Words
Relevance
Dissimilar Words
variants
also nonplusing
as in embarrassing
to throw into a state of self-conscious distress
I was nonplussed by his openly expressed admiration of me
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for nonplussing
Adjective
-
Hippocrates bases his explanation of epilepsy, that most perplexing of illnesses, on observation.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
28 Jan. 2026 -
That makes the decision to pull back on that ice time in the second period and again in overtime all the more perplexing.—
Vincent Z. Mercogliano,
New York Times,
27 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
Recently, Ryan spoke about the Beckham situation, the process of writing material as a mother without embarrassing her kids and her new goal of returning to the career trajectory of her pre-pregnant self in the near future.—
Deputy Entertainment,
Los Angeles Times,
28 Jan. 2026
-
Some mushroom bills backfired when their true impacts became known, embarrassing legislators who voted for them, and forcing them to backtrack.—
Dan Walters,
Mercury News,
14 Jan. 2026
Adjective
-
Fitting a narrow criteria There’s a more disconcerting reason why so few applied — DeSantis’ exceedingly narrow preference for right-wing soulmates and fellow members of the Federalist Society.—
Sun Sentinel Editorial Board,
Sun Sentinel,
22 Jan. 2026
-
Stray Hairs Stray hairs lingering in the tub drain, on the floor, or in the sink can be quite disconcerting.—
Lauren Landers,
The Spruce,
19 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
Too many turnaround attempts see a CEO throwing spaghetti at the wall in the hopes something will work, further confusing the rank and file and sapping their confidence in management.—
Phil Wahba,
Fortune,
30 Jan. 2026
-
One thing confusing some residents is snow emergency declarations and the residential street parking restrictions.—
Veronica Ortega,
CBS News,
26 Jan. 2026
Adjective
-
Over the last several days, many Americans have seen upsetting, and often violent, images and videos of protests in Minneapolis amid a flood of ICE agents entering the city for a federal immigration enforcement operation.—
Mary Kekatos,
ABC News,
28 Jan. 2026
-
That alone would be upsetting, but Rushdie, forever trying to understand the story of his own life, then walks his wife and her camera through all the moments before, during, and after the attack.—
Kate Erbland,
IndieWire,
26 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
In the latest violence rattling the fragile ceasefire, medics said two men were killed by Israeli forces in eastern Khan Younis, in an area adjacent to where the army operates.—
Nidal al-Mughrabi,
USA Today,
29 Jan. 2026
-
Archival footage illustrates, in pulse-pounding and nerve-rattling fashion, just how widespread calls for Rushdie’s murder were.—
Kate Erbland,
IndieWire,
26 Jan. 2026
Adjective
-
The Eagles were a confounding defending champion throughout the regular season.—
Jeff Howe,
New York Times,
5 Jan. 2026
-
What is the most confounding and terrible, however, is Gretchen’s assertion that Slade, the anti-Viagra, doesn’t get involved with the women on his own accord, but only engages because the women always talk about him.—
Brian Moylan,
Vulture,
10 Oct. 2025
Adjective
-
With little to no foil for this dismaying existence, however, Half His Age often succumbs to shock value in lieu of pushing beyond that which offends.—
Fran Hoepfner,
Vulture,
22 Jan. 2026
-
Democratic leaders actually were troubled by Mamdani’s rise (although their preference for a disgraced former governor was equally dismaying), but Democratic voters handed Mamdani a solid victory despite his radical positions.—
Steven Greenhut,
Oc Register,
28 Nov. 2025
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.
Cite this Entry
“Nonplussing.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/nonplussing. Accessed 3 Feb. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
