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You can describe something as abstruse if you find it highly complicated and difficult to understand.
Something that is arcane is mysterious and secret, known and understood by only a few people.
When you ascertain the truth of something, you determine or find it out for sure.
If you describe a system or process as byzantine, it means that you are criticizing it because it is excessively complicated and difficult to understand.
A clarion call is a stirring, emotional, and strong appeal to people to take action on something.
A conundrum is a problem or puzzle that is difficult or impossible to solve.
If you elucidate something, you make it easier to understand by giving more relevant information.
When people equivocate, they avoid making a clear statement; they are deliberately vague in order to avoid giving a direct answer to a question.
Something esoteric is known about or understood by very few people.
Exegesis is a detailed explanation or interpretation of a piece of writing, especially a religious one.
When you extricate yourself from a difficult or unpleasant situation, you manage to escape it.
If you fathom something complicated or mysterious, you are able to understand it.
A gossamer material is very thin, light, and delicate.
An illustrative example serves to explain or describe something, often by providing pictures.
If an idea or thought is incisive, it is expressed in a penetrating and knowledgeable manner that is clear and brief; additionally, it can demonstrate impressive understanding of related ideas or thoughts.
When a piece of information is indeterminate, it cannot be known with certainty.
Something inscrutable is very hard to figure out, discover, or understand what it is all about.
If someone is lucid, they are able to understand things and think clearly; this adjective also describes writing or speech that is crystal clear and easy to understand.
Something is opaque if it is either difficult to understand or is not transparent.
An overt act is not hidden or secret but is done in an open and public way.
A paradox is a statement that appears to be self-contradictory or unrealistic but may surprisingly express a possible truth.
A parenthetical remark further explains or qualifies information.
A patent situation is one that is wide open and unconcealed; it is both evident and obvious.
Something that is pellucid is either extremely clear because it is transparent to the eye or it is very easy for the mind to understand.
Someone who demonstrates perspicacity notices or understands things very quickly.
Something prosaic is dull, boring, and ordinary.
If you are in a quandary, you are in a difficult situation in which you have to make a decision but don’t know what to do.
Recondite areas of knowledge are those that are very difficult to understand and/or are not known by many people.
Adj.
enigmatic
en-ig-MAT-ik
Context
When asked what he gained most from his beliefs, the religious leader simply held forth a flower in a mysterious or enigmatic way. This enigmatic or puzzling response is confusing, forcing us to examine it carefully. Enigmas or riddles abound not only in religious matters but also throughout the humanities. Who hasn’t seen the Mona Lisa’s enigmatic expression and wondered what makes her smile in such an obscure and indecipherable way?
Quiz:Try again!
What is an example of something that is enigmatic?
A child’s hearty laughter that causes everyone around them to laugh as well.
A popular new dance club that is attracting local celebrities and politicians.
An ancient stone structure for which historians can find no purpose or meaning.
Ben the Pig Not Automatic Although Ben the Pig may seem simple on the surface, snarfing down his food every day in true piggy fashion, Ben the Pig can also be enigmatic because he automatically says "thank you" when you bring him his food, and we all know that pigs can't talk.
Examples
[As we look at the _Mona Lisa_ portrait, she] smiles back mysteriously. Look again. Her smile seems to flicker. We glance away, and the enigmatic smile lingers in our minds, as it does in the collective mind of humanity.
—
The Atlantic
But shortly after she joins the troupe, the women begin suffering intense, enigmatic fainting spells, or fits. Are these an affliction, or possibly an initiation into a state of grace? Holmer doesn’t answer that question outright, and her film, both intimate and bracingly cinematic, is better for it.
—
TIME
No one is certain what causes the enigmatic “fairy circles” of the Namib Desert. . . . Not even scientists can agree on an explanation.
—
The Washington Post
For decades, Mike Nichols was one of the most recognized names in theater and film, but very few people really knew the legendary director—even, it seems, himself. . . . Nichols, with his quicksilver mood and wide-ranging career, is a challenging subject for a biographer, but Harris does a beautiful job painting a portrait of a man who was as brilliant as he was enigmatic.
—
NPR
Anything enigmatic has “the nature of an obscure saying or riddle.”
Word Theater
YouTube: Join the Synergy (James Spader - Red as an Enigmatic Character) The character and the plot are enigmatic.
The panel shows a small video clip of either the word in actual use or a scene that represents the meaning of a word. This not only breaks up the monotony of studying words but also provides another avenue to strengthen word meaning. Enjoy!
Word Constellation
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Related Words
abstruse ·
arcane ·
byzantine ·
conundrum ·
equivocate ·
esoteric ·
exegesis ·
indeterminate+ ·
inscrutable ·
opaque ·
paradox ·
quandary ·
recondite ·
ascertain+ ·
clarion ·
elucidate ·
extricate ·
fathom ·
gossamer ·
illustrative+ ·
incisive ·
lucid ·
overt ·
parenthetical+ ·
patent ·
pellucid ·
perspicacity ·
prosaic ·
Similar sense
Opposite sense
Word Variants
enigma
n
→
puzzle; mystery; riddle
The section lists important variants and alternate definitions of the headword. Knowing variants will often help you both remember and understand the word. Not all variants are listed - only the ones we think that are important for you to know.
