perplexing

adjective

per·​plex·​ing pər-ˈplek-siŋ 

: difficult to understand : causing confusion

A perplexing feature of insomnia is that people seem to overestimate their sleep loss.

—Rita L. Atkinson et al.

Chronic acalculous biliary disorders are among the most perplexing diagnostic and therapeutic challenges in medicine.

—Richard M. Gore

A perplexing problem, often encountered by cat owners, is that of a refusal to use the litterbox after using it for years in the past.

—Susan L. Mathews

perplexingly adverb

a perplexingly complex problem

This was all that I could observe of her in the dim light and under the perplexingly strange circumstances of our meeting.

—Wilkie Collins

Examples of perplexing in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The circumstances surrounding the collapse are perplexing, but several problems probably put too much stress on these civilizations. —Jack Knudson, Discover Magazine, 10 May 2024

But perhaps nothing can hold a candle to Michael Shannon’s somewhat perplexing Balenciaga chip bag. —Hannah Jackson, Vogue, 7 May 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1585, in the meaning defined above