puzzledpuz‧zled /ˈpʌzəld/ ●●○ adjective 
‘Dinner?’ Sam asked, looking puzzled.puzzled about/as to/at John seemed puzzled about what the question meant.puzzled that Harry was puzzled that Nicholas didn’t seem to recognize him.puzzled look/expression/frown etc Alice read the letter with a puzzled expression on her face.► see thesaurus at confused
EXAMPLES FROM OTHER DICTIONARIES
- After my explanation, Mandy still had a puzzled expression on her face.
- Her reaction left me puzzled.
- I'm a little puzzled - why did you call her yourself when I specifically told you I would do it?
- The doctor was puzzled by the man's symptoms and ordered several further tests.
- All squatted, puzzled and uncertain.
- Epitot looked puzzled and removed it again.
- He saw the knot of people beyond the flames gazing at him in puzzled amazement, but they made no response.
- Hospital staff were puzzled after children collapsed with cardiac arrests and respiratory attacks.
- It gathers puzzled observers wherever it goes, too.
- Presently, Jaq blanked the eye-screen and relaxed, though with a puzzled air.
- She had sounded rather puzzled and insulted.
- She looked puzzled and rather angry, and Syl looked old and silly.
THESAURUS
unable to understand what someone is saying or what is happening: · I was rather confused by his question.· She gave me a confused look.· With the huge range of computers on the market, it’s easy to get confused.· She felt hurt and confused when her husband left her.
(also perplexed formal) confused because you cannot understand something, especially because it is different from what you expect: · The doctor was puzzled by the man’s symptoms and ordered several further tests.· He had a puzzled expression on his face.· Ross looked perplexed when the audience laughed.
very confused and unable to understand something, even though you have tried hard for a long time: · Detectives admit they are baffled by the case.· a baffled expression
very confused and surprised when something unusual and unexpected happens to you: · He was bewildered to find three policemen at the front door.· Bewildered train passengers watched as the man was arrested.· At first she was bewildered by all the noise and activity of the city.
confused and surprised by what has happened, or by what someone has said: · Local residents seem bemused by the sudden arrival of all the tourists.· She told him to leave, but he just sat there with a bemused expression.
spoken to have difficulty thinking clearly, for example because you are too tired, too busy, or because a lot of things are happening around you: · I can’t think straight with all this noise going on.
Longman Language Activatorconfused because something is difficult to understand completely unable to understand why or how something happened, especially because it is very different from what you expect: · I'm a little puzzled - why did you call her yourself when I specifically told you I would do it?· After my explanation, Mandy still had a puzzled expression on her face.puzzled by/at: · The doctor was puzzled by the man's symptoms and ordered several further tests.
very confused and unable to understand something, even though you have tried hard for a long time: · "I still can't figure this out," said Dane, baffled.baffled by/at: · At times the old man seemed baffled by his surroundings.baffled as to/about: · Detectives admit they are baffled about the killer's motive.
formal confused and worried by an event or situation that you do not understand: · Mr Rice was staring at the report with a perplexed expression on his face.· The sudden ups and downs of the stock market have left analysts perplexed.perplexed by: · Julie, perplexed by her boyfriend's sudden outburst, kept out of his way.
if someone is mystified by something, they are completely unable to understand it, and they are often very surprised by it: · "How could you possibly have known that?" he asked, totally mystified.mystified by: · Army officials are mystified by the illnesses that have struck veterans of the Gulf War.
COLLOCATIONS FROM THE ENTRY Alice read the letter with a puzzled expression on her face.COLLOCATIONS FROM OTHER ENTRIES
confused and unable to understand something: Alice read the letter with a puzzled expression on her face. (=one that shows you are confused or cannot understand something)· I can still recall Dan’s baffled expression when I asked him for an answer.
· He looked at his son’s puzzled face.
COLLOCATIONS FROM THE CORPUSADVERB· He emerged, shaken and slightly puzzled, long hair filled with leaves which he brushed away.· Aschmann was looking at him, slightly puzzled but smiling still.
NOUN· Shama, who was lifting herself up on her lame legs, turned with a puzzled expression.· The Colonel was flung back against the wall where he stood, for a moment, a puzzled expression on his face.
· The nun's forehead creased into a puzzled frown.· As she scanned the titles Polly's brows contracted in a puzzled frown.· Daak was unusually restrained, standing behind Ace with a hand on her shoulder and a puzzled frown on his face.· Robyn slowed the jeep with a puzzled frown, considering.· William got up from his chair at the workbench and went over to open up with a puzzled frown.
· Richard's puzzled look alarmed me.· I thought that Neil, still over by the door, had a puzzled look.· They viewed me with the same puzzled look as I later saw on the faces of nomads miles from civilization.· When the doctor saw me sitting beside the boy a puzzled look crossed his face.· She met it with a puzzled look in her eyes.· He shuddered at his remembrance of royalty's puzzled look when he removed this ostentatious headgear.· She sat up, the puzzled look on her face turning to one of irritation.· Oh yes, Enright remembered him very well, and when I mentioned the name a puzzled look fleetingly crossed his face.
‘Dinner?’ Sam asked, looking puzzled.puzzled about/as to/at John seemed puzzled about what the question meant.puzzled that Harry was puzzled that Nicholas didn’t seem to recognize him.puzzled look/expression/frown etc Alice read the letter with a puzzled expression on her face.► see thesaurus at confused