puzzlement
- noun
- /ˈpʌzəlmənt/
- Indeed, most would profess puzzlement at its having been asked in the first place.
- expressed puzzlement
- puzzlement and confusion
And one of these is a topic of enduring puzzlement, and that is entanglement.
- And one of these is a topic of enduring puzzlement, and that is entanglement.
- It can also mean a sort of puzzlement, a situation where you can't figure things out.
Examples
-
After some puzzlement, the clerk laughed and nodded and came back with what he needed, a Phillips head screwdriver.
-
Beyond his anger and frustration, she sensed a deep puzzlement over his wife's actions.
Fiction book (1992) -
I, I, I, I share your puzzlement about this whole matter.
-
As to his scientific views, he expressed puzzlement that anyone could be in doubt.
Academic text (1999) -
The result has been endless puzzlement about what the SAT is and means.
Academic text (1999) -
Kate turns and sees Jack, a look of puzzlement on her face.
Fiction book (2000) -
Having made little progress in identifying the object, our puzzlement and frustration grew.
Academic text (1993) -
Her eyes darted from him back to me, a trace of puzzlement crossing her face.
Fiction book (1999) -
The old moonshiner stared at the capsule, puzzlement wrinkling his face like ripples on a pond.
Fiction book (2001) -
She looked at the math problem in baffled puzzlement, unsure of how to approach it.
Synonyms
A feeling of being very confused and not knowing what to do
Feeling confused because something is hard to understand
A feeling of confusion when something is hard to understand
A feeling of not being able to understand something
A feeling of confusion when you cannot understand something
Making things confusing so people feel puzzled
A state of being confused and not able to think clearly
A feeling of not thinking or acting clearly
Antonyms
How Confused
Surface Forms
Morphology
Etymology
The word puzzlement comes from puzzle plus the ending -ment, which makes a noun meaning 'a state' or 'condition'. Think of a jigsaw puzzle that leaves you scratching your head; puzzlement is that feeling of being 'confused'.