mystifying

Examples

• All

• To people outside the humanitarian world, this latter stance seems both mystifying and utterly counterintuitive.

  Academic text (2002)

• While such a phenomenon is awe-inspiringly mystifying, it is also daunting in its ambiguity.

  Blog text (20)

• And people found this mystifying because that is very rarely done.

  Tim Ferriss

• It's also mystifying and scary, and life comes at you fast, no matter how good it is.

• Most families find the process, at best, mystifying and, at worst, overwhelming.

  Blog text (25)

• And as Terry said, the heart of this book is the research on happiness, which we show is much more mystifying than you think.

• This is an unfortunate contagion, and I have found it mystifying, frankly.

  Triggernometry

• Moreover, Iser's mystifying style makes The Act of Reading rather unreadable.

  Academic text (2002)

• The play celebrates beauty in the favela, but in a mystifying fashion that conceals socio-historical contexts.

  Academic text (1998)

• The magician's trick was so mystifying that no one could figure out how it was done.

Synonyms

M

mysterious

vsmystifying

498 5.1

Hard to understand or explain because it seems strange

is confusing because it makes someone puzzled or unable to explain

C

cryptic

vsmystifying

43 8.1

Hard to understand because it seems secret or mysterious

instead produces general confusion without relying on hidden messages

P

puzzling

vsmystifying

42 4.6

Hard to understand or explain

specifically makes someone feel puzzled rather than only being unclear

M

mind-boggling

vsmystifying

• Informal

31 7.0

Very surprising or hard to understand

means causing puzzlement but not necessarily extreme astonishment

E

enigmatic

vsmystifying

27 8.1

Hard to understand and often seems mysterious

is instead focused on causing clear confusion rather than secrecy

B

baffling

vsmystifying

27 6.4

Hard to understand and causing confusion

is about creating puzzlement rather than total impossibility to explain

P

perplexing

vsmystifying

16 6.7

Making people feel confused because it is hard to understand

focuses more on making someone feel puzzled than on complexity alone

B

bewildering

vsmystifying

13 5.2

Causing a lot of confusion and making things hard to understand

is more about producing puzzlement than causing complete disorientation

I

inscrutable

vsmystifying

12 8.9

Hard to understand because it shows no clear meaning or feeling

creates puzzlement but can be solvable or explainable in some cases

D

disorienting

vsmystifying

8 6.0

Making someone feel confused and unable to find their way

produces bafflement or puzzlement rather than loss of direction

E

enigmatical

vsmystifying

1 9.3

Hard to understand, like a puzzle

creates direct confusion or puzzlement rather than just being obscure

B

boggling

vsmystifying

1 7.5

Very surprising and hard to understand because it is unusual

creates confusion more by puzzling someone than by sheer surprise

M

mysterial

vsmystifying

• Archaic

9.9

Strange and hard to understand, giving a feeling of mystery

causes straightforward confusion without necessarily seeming strange or eerie

C

cryptical

vsmystifying

• Archaic

9.9

Hard to understand because it has a hidden meaning

causes puzzlement more by being unclear than by hiding intent

M

mystificatory

vsmystifying

• Formal

9.9

Causing confusion on purpose

produces puzzlement without implying intentional hiding or tricking

D

dumbfounding

vsmystifying

7.5

Causing someone to be unable to speak because they are very surprised

focuses on causing puzzlement or bafflement rather than mainly surprise

Antonyms

C

clear

∞ 1.0

Easy to understand and not confusing

S

simple

∞ 1.0

Easy to understand or do

How Confusing

incomprehensible

46 8.8

mystifying

7 7.3

confusing

276 3.2

unclear

207 3.9

vague

230 4.6

Surface Forms

Morphology

Etymology