PUZZLES Synonyms: 96 Similar and Opposite Words

puzzles 1 of 2

noun

plural of puzzle

as in mysteries

something hard to understand or explain the final fate of the colonists at Roanoke remains a puzzle to this very day

Synonyms & Similar Words

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puzzles

2 of 2

verb

present tense third-person singular of puzzle

as in baffles

to throw into a state of mental uncertainty it is the cause of the disease that puzzles doctors

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 puzzles

Noun

Providing chew toys for cats along with food puzzles and rotating play options can help channel that energy. — Ryan Brennan, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 15 July 2026 Ristroph’s lab frequently addresses these kinds of colorful real-world puzzles. — Jennifer Ouellette, ArsTechnica, 13 July 2026 My demo partner and I explored the colony at our own pace, interacting with the cooperative puzzles and mini-games. — Zackery Cuevas, PC Magazine, 7 July 2026 Using a seamless combination of FaceTime calls, CCTV and news footage, and investigators’ video evidence, Aneesh Chaganty weaves a riveting, anxious, and classically creepy found footage movie that puzzles until its final moments. — Declan Gallagher, Entertainment Weekly, 7 July 2026 Join 350,000+ subscribers and keep yourself informed with a selection of The Week’s most interesting, enlightening and entertaining stories - plus daily puzzles. — The Week Uk, TheWeek, 4 July 2026 Jigsaw puzzles engage spatial awareness, sustained attention, and patience—all cognitive skills that can decline with age. — Allison Forsyth, Health, 30 June 2026 Check out the all new PLAY hub with puzzles, games and more! — Alexandra Frost, USA Today, 29 June 2026 To test that, the final group completed cognitively demanding games such as mazes and shape puzzles called tangrams that contained no academic content. — Supreet Kaur, Scientific American, 10 June 2026

Verb

The pitch can move to either direction of the plate — a profile that still puzzles his teammates and pitch recognition tools. — Chandler Rome, New York Times, 1 July 2026 Although many economists say the market was overvalued and a decline was inevitable, what triggered the crash is open to debate, and the sheer magnitude of the drop still puzzles economists. — Barbara Hagenbaugh, USA Today, 22 June 2026 What still puzzles me, amid all these noteworthy projects, is Dudamel’s way with the standard repertory. — Alex Ross, New Yorker, 15 June 2026 These word puzzles all covertly reference the years-old disappearance of Charlie, Martha’s brilliant older sister. — The Know, Denver Post, 4 June 2026 The lineage of these hybrids traces back to Wolf Volcano on Isabela Island, a discovery that still puzzles scientists today. — ABC News, 20 Feb. 2026 While everyone else puzzles it over, Coe is already on his way to the multi-faith ceremony at Abbotsfield, where Mayor Jaffrey is joining other mourners to honor the 11 people killed in the assault that opened the season. — Scott Tobias, Vulture, 29 Oct. 2025

Recent Examples of Synonyms for puzzles

Noun

Ivy must balance the mysteries of Fox Glenn and the White family with threats to her own safety, per the novel’s synopsis.

— Carly Tagen-Dye, PEOPLE, 15 July 2026
The answers to many of the lingering mysteries of the Bermuda Triangle may be explained by the fact that this part of the world is prone to powerful storms.

— Andrea Romano, Travel + Leisure, 15 July 2026

Definition of mysteries

Verb

Meanwhile, McGrew agreed to adjustments, including adding baffles to reduce sound from a attached generator for the tower and replacing tower fencing that incorporated barbed wire with taller, more natural looking fencing.

— Olivia Stevens, Chicago Tribune, 9 July 2026
Using humane methods like squirrel baffles and tree nets can effectively keep squirrels out of your fruit trees.

— Michelle Mastro, Martha Stewart, 18 June 2026

Definition of baffles

Verb

These opportunists drown out the core mission, creating a cacophony of competing voices that confuses donors, crowd the inboxes of CEOs and members of Congress with colliding petitions, and paralyzes meaningful action by draining critical funding and attention away from the truly effective groups.

— Jeffrey Sonnenfeld, Time, 28 June 2026
But nobody confuses Harvard Extension School classes with the real thing.

— Liz Hoffman, semafor.com, 23 June 2026

Definition of confuses

Verb

As fans of the comedian know, Ali G is a streetwise interviewer whose hip hop slang often bewilders guests such as Noam Chomsky, Andy Rooney and Newt Gingrich.

— Brent Lang, Variety, 7 July 2026
The narrator and his wife find that their attachment to the charismatic and cryptic Chibi grows with the cat’s increasing visits, in a way that bewilders them but somehow bonds them closer together.

— Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 9 June 2026