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

Why our leader makes these drastic decisions to benefit the earlier mentioned Vladimir is perplexing and there are plenty of juicy explanations in circulation. —Reader Commentary, Baltimore Sun, 14 Mar. 2025

However, what was perplexing was with with seconds dwindling on the clock in the fourth quarter, down one, the Yellow Jackets Tonie Morgan brings the ball up the court and passes it off to Dani Carnegie. —Allison Smith, Forbes, 8 Mar. 2025

Mediumship does not belong to some incredulous or demented margins; it can be practiced ethically by individuals trained through empirical standards to address the uncanny and perplexing phenomena beyond our five-sense world. —Kwame Anthony Appiah, New York Times, 26 Feb. 2025

One of the most perplexing and seemingly antiquated features of City Hall got a lot of use Tuesday: a bulletin board where motions are posted for public viewing. —Tony Barboza, Los Angeles Times, 18 Jan. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1585, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for perplexing

• annexing
• complexing
• flexing
• sexing
• vexing
• multiplexing