mystery
[noun]
Synonyms: puzzle, conundrum, enigma, problem, question, riddle, secret, teaser

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Contrasted words: open book
Related Words: poser, problem, stumper, perplexity, brainteaser, brain twister

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English Thesaurus: mysterious, puzzling, baffling, inexplicable, enigmatic, ...

[TahlilGaran] English Synonym Dictionary ▲

I. mys‧te‧ry¹ W3 /ˈmɪstəri/ noun (plural mysteries)
[Date: 1300-1400; Language: Latin; Origin: mysterium, from Greek, from mystos 'keeping silent', from myein (of the eyes or lips) 'to be closed']

1. [countable usually singular] an event, situation etc that people do not understand or cannot explain because they do not know enough about it:
Twenty years after the event, his death remains a mystery.
The way her mind worked was always a mystery to him.
‘Why did he do it?’ ‘I don’t know. It’s a complete mystery.’
The police never solved the mystery of Gray’s disappearance.
But why would anyone want to kill Jack? The mystery deepened.
What happened to the paintings after that is an unsolved mystery.
I don’t know how he got the job – it’s one of life’s little mysteries.
How life began on Earth is one of the great mysteries of science.

2. [uncountable] the quality that something or someone has when they seem strange, secret, or difficult to understand or explain:
Her dark glasses gave her an air of mystery.
Annie knew that there was some mystery surrounding her birth.
be shrouded/veiled in mystery
The circumstances of his death were veiled in mystery.

3. [countable usually plural] a subject, activity etc that is very complicated, secret, or difficult to understand, and that people want to learn about
the mysteries of something
his introduction to the mysteries of the perfume business

4. [countable] (also murder mystery) a story, film, or play about a murder, in which you are not told who the murderer is until the end:
an Agatha Christie mystery

[TahlilGaran] Dictionary of Contemporary English ▲

II. mystery² adjective [only before noun]
used to describe someone or something that people do not recognize or know anything about, especially when this causes great interest
mystery man/woman
Who was the mystery woman spotted on board the yacht with the prince?
a mystery virus

[TahlilGaran] Dictionary of Contemporary English ▲

mystery
noun
ADJ. big, great How the disease started is one of medicine's great mysteries.
little, minor, small one of life's little mysteries
complete, total She was a total mystery to him despite their long association.
whole He had found the clue to unlock the whole mystery
certain Her blue eyes had a certain mystery.
real | central the central mystery of the story
deep, profound a place of deep mystery and enchantment
arcane | dark, terrible | fascinating | insoluble | unexplained, unsolved | religious, sacred | scientific | murder He is the author of several murder mysteries.
VERB + MYSTERY be, present (sb with), remain How these insects actually communicate presents something of a mystery.
have, hold It was easy to believe that the tiny hamlet held some great mystery.
be cloaked in, be shrouded in, be veiled in The whole incident was shrouded in mystery.
lose Air travel has lost much of its mystery.
clear up, explain, resolve, solve, uncover, unlock, unravel The police are close to solving the mystery of the missing murder weapon.
shed/throw light on The witness could shed no light on the mystery of the deceased's identity.
explore, fathom, grapple with, penetrate, understand Her poetry attempts to penetrate the dark mystery of death.
ponder (on) She pondered the mystery of the disappearing thief.
MYSTERY + VERB deepen The mystery deepened when the police's only suspect was found murdered.
surround sth the mystery surrounding her resignation
MYSTERY + NOUN man, woman Their suspect was a mystery man: a quiet, happily married man with no enemies.
caller, guest | tour | disease, illness, virus
PREP. ~ about There's a bit of a mystery about this child.
~ as to It remains a mystery as to where he was buried.
~ to My sister is a complete mystery to me.
PHRASES an air/aura of mystery Wearing dark glasses gives him an air of mystery.
something of a mystery, take the mystery out of sth Modern weather forecasts try to take the mystery out of meteorology.

[TahlilGaran] Collocations Dictionary ▲

mystery

be a mystery
It’s a mystery how he got my phone number.
remain a mystery
What caused the accident remains a mystery.
solve/unravel a mystery (=find out what happened)
The children were given the clues and had to try to solve the mystery.
the mystery deepens (=it becomes more difficult to understand)
Why would he run away if he were not guilty? The mystery deepens.
the mystery surrounding something
Research has unravelled much of the mystery surrounding the ageing process.
a complete/total mystery
She said that her husband’s disappearance was a complete mystery.
an unsolved mystery
What happened to her is still an unsolved mystery.
a great mystery (=a big and important mystery)
It is one of the great mysteries of science.
a little/minor mystery
It was a minor mystery how the file had survived the fire.
a big mystery
If they are right, they have solved one of the biggest mysteries in astronomy.
something is one of life’s (little) mysteries (=it is something that you will never understand – used humorously)
Where socks disappear to after they’ve been washed is one of life’s little mysteries.
be shrouded/veiled in mystery (=be unable to be explained)
The origins of this tradition remain shrouded in mystery.
mystery surrounds something (=something cannot be explained)
Mystery has always surrounded the purpose of the great stone circle of Stonehenge.
deep mystery (=big and important mystery)
the deep mystery of the human mind
great mystery
We wondered about the great mystery of death.
an element of mystery (=part of something that seems mysterious)
There is an element of mystery and miracle in the process.
an air of mystery (=something that seems mysterious)
There was an air of mystery about him.
a sense of mystery (=a feeling that something is mysterious)
The garden had hidden corners that gave it a sense of mystery.

[TahlilGaran] Collocations Dictionary ▲

mysterious difficult to explain or understand, and often strange or slightly frightening:
the mysterious disappearance of ships in the waters of the Bermuda Triangle
What’s that mysterious noise?
puzzling difficult to explain or understand:
At first this must seem a puzzling question.
I found her attitude deeply puzzling.
baffling impossible to understand, so that you feel very confused:
It was a baffling case.
Like many people, I find theroretical physics baffling.
inexplicable formal impossible to explain:
For some inexplicable reason her mind went completely blank.
Some things in life are inexplicable.
enigmatic formal mysterious and difficult to understand, but also often attractive or interesting – used especially about people, their expressions, or things they say:
She gave him an enigmatic smile.
an enigmatic remark
cryptic formal having a meaning that is difficult to understand, and is not expressed in a clear direct way – used especially about things that people say or write:
I got a rather cryptic message from him.
cryptic comments
be a mystery if something is a mystery, you cannot understand how or why it happens:
Four years later, his death remains a complete mystery.
It’s all a mystery to me.
be shrouded/veiled in mystery if an event or a situation, especially one that happened a long time ago, is shrouded in mystery, it is mysterious because no one knows exactly what happened:
Stone age civilization, veiled in mystery as it is, has provided the greatest challenge to historians.

[TahlilGaran] English Thesaurus ▲