per·plex

[per-pleks] ,
verb (used with object)
1.
to cause to be puzzled or bewildered over what is not understood or certain; confuse mentally: Her strange response perplexed me.
2.
to make complicated or confused, as a matter or question.
3.
to hamper with complications, confusion, or uncertainty.

Origin:
1585–95; back formation from perplexed

per·plex·er, noun
per·plex·ing·ly, adverb
un·per·plex·ing, adjective


1. mystify, confound. 2. tangle, snarl. 3. vex, annoy, bother.
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Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
Cite This Source Link To perplex
00:10
Perplex is one of our favorite verbs.
So is skedaddle. Does it mean:
to run away hurriedly; flee.
to introduce subtleties into or argue subtly about.
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World English Dictionary
perplex (pəˈplɛks) [Click for IPA pronunciation guide]
 
vb
1.  to puzzle; bewilder; confuse
2.  to complicate: to perplex an issue
 
[C15: from obsolete perplex (adj) intricate, from Latin perplexus entangled, from per- (thoroughly) + plectere to entwine]

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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Example sentences
All night no ruder air perplex.
The challenge of flash flood forecasts continues to perplex forecasters.
The physics of clouds have continued to perplex scientists-and hobby gazers-for
  decades.
And at the top of the list of questions that perplex investors most is how to
  determine an investment's cost basis.
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