perplex

Verb

Synonyms: vex stick get puzzle mystify baffle beat pose bewilder flummox stupefy nonplus

WordNet 3.0

Verb (2)

be a mystery or bewildering to“This beats me!”“Got me--I don't know the answer!”“a vexing problem”“This question really stuck me”Synonyms: vex stick get puzzle mystify baffle beat pose bewilder flummox stupefy nonplus gravel amaze dumbfound
make more complicated“There was a new development that complicated the matter”Synonyms: complicate

Webster's Dictionary (GCIDE)

Perplex \Per*plex"\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Perplexed; p. pr. & vb. n. Perplexing.] [L. perplexari. See Perplex, a.]

1.To involve; to entangle; to make intricate or complicated, and difficult to be unraveled or understood; as, to perplex one with doubts. [1913 Webster]

No artful wildness to perplex the scene.— Pope.[1913 Webster]

What was thought obscure, perplexed, and too hard for our weak parts, will lie open to the understanding in a fair view.— Locke.[1913 Webster]

2.To embarrass; to puzzle; to distract; to bewilder; to confuse; to trouble with ambiguity, suspense, or anxiety. "Perplexd beyond self-explication." --Shak. [1913 Webster]

We are perplexed, but not in despair.— 2 Cor. iv. 8.[1913 Webster]

We can distinguish no general truths, or at least shall be apt to perplex the mind.— Locke.[1913 Webster]

3.To plague; to vex; to torment. --Glanvill. [1913 Webster]

Syn: To entangle; involve; complicate; embarrass; puzzle; bewilder; confuse; distract. See Embarrass. [1913 Webster]

Perplex \Per*plex"\, a. [L. perplexus entangled, intricate; per + plectere, plexum, to plait, braid: cf. F. perplexe. See Per-, and Plait.] Intricate; difficult. [Obs.] --Glanvill. [1913 Webster]