shrouded in mystery
4
7.7
- idiom
:
envuelto en misterio
- The ancient ruins are shrouded in mystery, leading to many theories about their origins.
- remain shrouded in mystery
Examples
-
Utah is a place shrouded in mystery for many people.
Blog text (14) -
Despite all of this, one subject remains shrouded in mystery: the mind of man.
Blog text (5) -
The full power of the stone is shrouded in mystery.
-
The river is shrouded in mystery.
-
Much has become clear about this group that was earlier shrouded in mystery.
Academic text (1997) -
But in the middle, everything is shrouded in mystery and indeed some great confusion.
-
Yet Gulen himself remains shrouded in mystery.
Blog text (14) -
Despite its fame, Koistinen is a case shrouded in mystery.
Academic text (2017) -
Much of the early history of the Ba'ath, both as a political party and an ideology, remains shrouded in mystery.
Academic text (1996) -
As well known as King Arthur is today, he remains shrouded in mystery, historical truth veiled by passing centuries.
Synonyms
498
5.1
Hard to understand or explain because it seems strange
125
1.1
A thing that is not easily seen or found
43
8.1
Hard to understand because it seems secret or mysterious
37
5.8
Kept secret and not told to other people
35
9.0
Hidden from view and not easy to see
27
8.1
Hard to understand and often seems mysterious
25
6.2
Partly hidden or not said clearly
13
7.5
People keep it secret from most others to avoid being noticed
4
6.8
Hidden so people cannot see the true purpose or meaning
1
9.3
Hard to understand, like a puzzle
Hard to understand because it has a hidden meaning
Mysterious and hard to understand, like a prophecy
Antonyms
How Mysterious
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning 'surrounded by secrecy or uncertainty' follows directly from composing 'shroud' (to cover or obscure) with 'in' and 'mystery' (a puzzling situation): something is literally 'covered in mystery.' The metaphorical covering is transparent and common cross-linguistically, so a B1 learner who knows the constituent words should be able to infer the phrase meaning.
Etymology
The phrase shrouded in mystery comes from the image of something wrapped in a cloth called a shroud, which hides it. So when we say something is shrouded in mystery, we mean it is 'hidden' or 'difficult to understand'.