puzzled 1 of 2

puzzled

2 of 2

verb

past tense of puzzle

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for puzzled
Adjective
  • More than a year later, the campus remains in a state of bewildered unease.
    Nathan Heller, The New Yorker, 3 Mar. 2025
  • But for many bewildered observers, both explanations for Trump’s extraordinary pivot to the Kremlin seem equally misplaced.
    Matthew Chance, CNN, 2 Mar. 2025
Adjective
  • In a restaurant, therefore, raise a quizzical eyebrow at any risotto that reaches the table in less than twenty-five minutes.
    Anthony Lane, The New Yorker, 16 Dec. 2024
  • Goose is following his path, looking for brains and leaving laughter and quizzical looks behind. Follow me on Twitter or LinkedIn.
    Eric Fuller, Forbes, 23 Jan. 2025
Adjective
  • Americanah, though lighter fare, is also a book of characters and ideas — a romance as well as a bemused meditation on American notions of racial identity.
    Sanjena Sathian, Vulture, 24 Feb. 2025
  • The photo showed an A4-sized printout of a cat's face, looking slightly bemused.
    Daniel R. Depetris, Newsweek, 1 Feb. 2025
Adjective
  • Some critics on the left were wary of the administration’s employment of market logics and its tendency to treat citizens as consumers.
    Jacob Bruggeman & Casey Eilbert / Made by History, TIME, 3 Mar. 2025
  • The public is on balance wary of Musk and DOGE's access to government agency data records.
    Anthony Salvanto, CBS News, 2 Mar. 2025
Adjective
  • Many wouldn’t be surprised to hear that this year’s biggest blockbusters aren’t well represented at the Oscars; however, that’s not always the case.
    Rosa Escandon, Forbes, 1 Mar. 2025
  • Rice was surprised when a Ukrainian politician, Viktor Yanukovych, suddenly emerged from a side room.
    James Verini, The New Yorker, 1 Mar. 2025
Adjective
  • Some loyal Tesla bulls are treating the drop as a temporary setback (or even a buying opportunity), while more cautious investors are rethinking their exposure.
    Shahar Ziv, Forbes, 11 Mar. 2025
  • China's approach to Trump's second term is more cautious, with the government emphasizing that any negotiations should take place on equal terms.
    Hannah Parry, Newsweek, 10 Mar. 2025
Verb
  • Many people get confused by these forms which contain code and jargon that rarely offer a clear explanation of anything.
    Steve Weisman, Forbes, 23 Dec. 2024
  • Many were left confused as to how or why the Yankees couldn't have matched that number to bring the Gold Glove first baseman to the Bronx.
    Gord Magill, Newsweek, 21 Dec. 2024
Adjective
  • That’s certainly what the Holland trailer feels like, putting Nicole Kidman at the center of a paranoid satire about a seemingly picture-perfect Michigan homemaker whose husband (Matthew Macfadyen) is up to … something.
    Matthew Jacobs, Vulture, 6 Mar. 2025
  • Or is Julia, as the men in her life keep telling her, just being paranoid?
    Randall Colburn, EW.com, 27 Feb. 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.

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Puzzled.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/puzzled. Accessed 15 Mar. 2025.

More from Merriam-Webster on puzzled

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!