2020-12-11
ศัพท์ น่าสับสน ชุด P – Puzzle & perplex & bewilder
แนะนำการใช้ ตามที่ส่วนใหญ่ใช้ แต่ละท้องถิ่น
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Dictionary.com
ออกเสียง Puzzle = ‘PUHZ-uhl’
ออกเสียง perplex = ‘per-PLEKS’
ออกเสียง bewilder = ‘bih-WIL-der’
Farlex Trivia Dictionary.
puzzle
- rebus - A puzzle in which one must decode a message consisting of pictures representing syllables and words.
- puzzle - Comes from Old French opposaile, "thing set before one," "bewildering thing"; as a verb, it first meant "be beset by difficulties."
- cabobble - To mystify, puzzle, or confuse.
- word search - A puzzle consisting of letters arranged in a grid which contains a number of hidden words written in various directions.
Dictionary.com
SYNONYM STUDY FOR PUZZLE
Puzzle, riddle, enigma
refer to something baffling or confusingthat is to be solved.
A puzzle is a question or problem,intricate enough to be perplexing to the mind;
it is sometimes a contrivance made purposely perplexing to test one's ingenuity:
a crossword puzzle; The reason for their behavior remains a puzzle.
A riddle is an intentionally obscure statement or question,
the meaning of or answer to which is to be arrived at only by guessing:
the famous riddle of the Sphinx.
Enigma, originally meaning riddle, now refers to some baffling problem with connotations of mysteriousness: He will always be an enigma to me.
Dictionary.com
Learn The History Of The New York Times Crossword Puzzle
There are plenty of crossword puzzles in publications across the country,
but when we think of the pinnacle of puzzledom
(Not officially a word, but, perhaps, it should be?),
the purveyors of the most preeminent puzzles,
we bow to The New York Times (NYT).
For more than 75 years, the NYT crossword puzzle has been stumping readers with its clever clues and then sending them soaring when they finally fill in all the squares.
When did the NYT Crossword begin?
When crossword puzzles first came about in the 1920s,
the NYT turned up its nose at them. In 1924,
the paper ran an opinion column that dubbed them
“a primitive sort of mental exercise.”
(Here, we’re inferring they meant primitive
as in “simple; unsophisticated”—Dictionary.com’s ninth entry for the adjective)
and a “sinful waste.” Harsh!
So, what absolved the crossword puzzle in the illustrious publication’s mind and made them eat their words?
Reportedly, it was after the bombing of Pearl Harbor that Lester Markel, the paper’s Sunday editor at the time, decided the country could use some levity, primitive or not.
The first puzzle ran Sunday, February 15, 1942,
and it was, in fact, a primitive pursuit,
(Dictionary.com’s first definition for the adjective:
“Being the first or earliest of the kind or in existence”),
as they were the first major US paper to run a crossword puzzle.
By 1950, the paper began running a crossword puzzle daily.
At the helm of the NYT Crossword
Since that time, there have only been four editors of the NYT Crossword puzzle, beginning with Margaret Farrar, who served as editor from the publication of the first puzzle until 1969. Will Weng and Eugene Maleska followed in her footsteps before Will Shortz took the coveted reins in 1993.
Shortz has gained widespread notoriety since that time, taking the puzzle to higher and higher heights over the years.
Fun fact:He’s the only “academically accredited puzzle master” in the world,
holding a degree he designed himself in “enigmatology.”
It’s such a specialized degree, there’s not even an entry for it on Dictionary.com, but it stems from the word enigma.
The NYT Crossword today
Today, the crossword has moved far beyond its primitive origins.
Not only does it run in the paper seven days a week with varying degrees of complexity, but you can also complete NYT Crossword puzzles online, and there’s even a video game adaptation of it for the Nintendo DS.
As for the crossword puzzles being “sinful”… we’ll give you a clue.
What’s a five-letter word for one of the seven deadly sins
you may be in danger of committing after completing a NYT Crossword puzzle?
Answer: PRIDE.
Merriam-Webster Dictionary
Choose the Right Synonym for puzzle
Verb
PUZZLE, PERPLEX, BEWILDER, DISTRACT, NONPLUS, CONFOUND, DUMBFOUND
mean to baffle and disturb mentally.
PUZZLE implies existence of a problem difficult to solve.
the persistent fever puzzled the doctor
PERPLEX adds a suggestion of worry and uncertainty especially about making a necessary decision. a behavior that perplexed her friends
BEWILDER stresses a confusion of mind that hampers clear and decisive thinking. a bewildering number of possibilities
DISTRACT implies agitation or uncertainty induced by conflicting preoccupations or interests. distracted by personal problems
NONPLUS implies a bafflement that makes orderly planning or deciding impossible. the remark left us utterly nonplussed
CONFOUND implies temporary mental paralysis caused by astonishment or profound abasement. the tragic news confounded us all
DUMBFOUND suggests intense but momentary confounding;
often the idea of astonishment is so stressed that it becomes a near synonym of astound.
was at first too dumbfounded to reply
Noun
MYSTERY, PROBLEM, ENIGMA, RIDDLE, PUZZLE
mean something which baffles or perplexes.
MYSTERY applies to what cannot be fully understood by reason or less strictly to whatever resists or defies explanation.
the mystery of the stone monoliths
PROBLEM applies to a question or difficulty calling for a solution or causing concern. problems created by high technology
ENIGMA applies to utterance or behavior that is very difficult to interpret.
his suicide remains an enigma
RIDDLE suggests an enigma or problem involving paradox or apparent contradiction. the riddle of the reclusive pop star
PUZZLE applies to an enigma or problem that challenges ingenuity for its solution. the thief's motives were a puzzle for the police
Merriam-Webster Dictionaryv Merriam-Webster Dictionary
Choose the Right Synonym for perplex& bewilder
PUZZLE, PERPLEX, BEWILDER, DISTRACT, NONPLUS, CONFOUND, DUMBFOUND
mean to baffle and disturb mentally.
PUZZLE impliesexistence of a problem difficult to solve. the persistent fever puzzled the doctor
PERPLEX adds a suggestion of worry and uncertainty especially about making a necessary decision. a behavior that perplexed her friends
BEWILDER stresses a confusion of mind that hampers clear and decisive thinking. a bewildering number of possibilities
DISTRACT implies agitation or uncertainty induced by conflicting preoccupations or interests. distracted by personal problems
NONPLUS implies a bafflement that makes orderly planning or deciding impossible. the remark left us utterly nonplussed
CONFOUND implies temporary mental paralysis caused by astonishment or profound abasement. the tragic news confounded us all
DUMBFOUND suggests intense but momentary confounding; often the idea of astonishment is so stressed that it becomes a near synonym of astound. was at first too dumbfounded to reply
Merriam-Webster Dictionary
Words We're Watching
'Confuzzled': A Not So Confusing Definition
Confuzzled about 'confuzzled'? We can help.
What does confuzzled mean?
Confuzzled: simultaneously confused and puzzled;
a portmanteau of 'confused' and 'puzzled.'
Where did confuzzled come from?
Eons ago (in Internet years) this company put out a call to its readers:
What words would you like to see us enter in the Merriam-Webster.com dictionary? More than 3,000 words were submitted, some of which eventually gained entry.
(We're looking at you, ginormous.)
Most, however, linger still in not-yet-established-member-of-the-language land,
where it's possible they'll languish forever.
But one may be moving closer to dictionary breakthrough: confuzzled.
Confuzzled was reported, lo those many years ago back in 2005,
to mean "simultaneously confused and puzzled,"
and it doesn't seem to have strayed far from that use:
The Grammys were Sunday, and let’s just say, like the Golden Globes last month, they were an utter cluster ball of total confusion. Practically everyone was completely and utterly confuzzled, from the host herself, Alicia Keys, to the onlooking crowd at the Staples Center to the Clog ourselves. — Chloe Lelchuk, The Daily Clog (University of California at Berkeley), 12 Feb. 2019
It's a playful word that tends to appear in informal writing,
but it also occasionally turns up in rather dry contexts:
On the same 1Q18 earnings call, CEO Hawkins appeared confuzzled. At one point, he incorrectly recited the Company’s financial guidance and had to be corrected….— Plus Company Updates, 29 May 2018
Confuzzled—a classic blend word, aka portmanteau,
formed from confused and puzzled
—is typically used as an adjective,
but it's technically the past participle form of the verb confuzzle.
A number of related terms based on the verb exist too:
After 25 years David Lynch welcomed us back to Twin Peaks and the surrealistic nightmare of its dreamlike logic and confuzzling mysteries.— Karl Puschmann, The New Zealand Herald, 18 Dec. 2017
When it comes to the written word, poetry has been a constant source of confuzzlement for me. — Mark York, The Stanford Daily (Stanford University), 30 Apr. 2019
The word is claimed by a character in the 2009
Australian movie Mary and Max, by Adam Elliot:
Do you have a favourite-sounding word?
My top 5 are ointment, bumblebee, Vladivostok, banana and testicle.
I have also invented some new words
—'confuzzled,' which is being confusedand puzzled at the same time,
'snirt,' which is a cross between snow and dirt,
and 'smushables' … which are squashed groceries you find at the bottom of the bag.
Earliest Usage
But, as noted above, it was submitted to us in 2005,
and preliminary research dates to the word to at least 1994,
when it appeared (per a book review) in a text teaching management fundamentals through A. A. Milne's immortal Winnie-the-Pooh and friends.
The book's author fittingly puts the word into the mouth of Pooh himself:
The whole concept of blending endearing childhood memories with the competitive world of business [in management consultant Roger E. Allen's Winnie-the-Pooh on Management] is either marketing genius or really disturbing. On the one hand, (Pooh is ''confuzzled'' by this phrase) learning sophisticated business lessons vicariously through old pals Owl, Tigger, Eeyore and Piglet might be the ideal ''fuzzy slippers-warm cup of cocoa'' tonic that management could use. — Dean Narciso, The Columbus (Ohio) Dispatch, 28 Nov. 1994
Milne's Pooh didn't know the term, as best we can tell.
A few other moments in the development of confuzzled and its relations are perhaps worth mentioning. It had its Urban Dictionary debut in 2003, and its Twitter one in 2009:
But confuzzle and its relations are by no means common,
and it's still unclear whether any of them will settle fully into the language.
We're not confuzzled by this;
many words putter along for years and years without rising from obscurity to meet our criteria of significant use in a variety of sources over an extended period of time.
Confuzzled is making progress in all three categories, though, and we are, of course, watching.
Dictionary of Problem Words and Expression
Puzzle & perplex & bewilder
Although these verbs have different origins,
they mean about the same thing and can safely beinterchanged.
Puzzle, the most commonly used of the three terms,
means “to put someone at a loss,” “to mystify,” “to baffle”:
“What you are trying to do puzzles me.
Perplex means “to confuse mentally,” “to make complicated,” “to confound”:
“Just what action to take now perplexes the manager.”
Bewilder, the strongest of these words,
means “to confuse utterly,” “to daze,” “to stagger”:
“Because you treat me differently every time we meet, I am utterly bewildered.”
Related word are nonplus, confound, mystify, vex, entangle, and frustrate.
