puzzle

puzzle
v. trans.
P. εἰς ἀπορίαν καθιστάναι.
Confuse: P. and V. τᾰράσσειν. ἐκπλήσσειν.
Lead astray: P. and V. πλᾰνᾶν.
Be puzzled: P. and V. ἀ̆πορεῖν, ἀ̆μηχᾰνεῖν (rare P.).

puzzle
subs.
Difficulty: P. and V. ἀ̆πορία, ἡ.
Bewilderment: P. and V. ἀ̆πορία, ἡ. πλά̆νη, ἡ.

PUZZLE

v. impedire: turbare: conturbare: obturbare: anything puzzles us sadly aliquid nos acriter torquet (Caelius ap. Cic.): to be puzzled with anything impediri implicari aliqua re: to be puzzled to know what to do incertum esse quid faciam: to be puzzled how to do anything aliquis magna difficultate afficitur qua ratione aliquid faciat.

puzzle (subs.):

I. A question or trick, either to confuse, or to exercise the ingenuity:

1. nōdus, m., gen. term. Join: nodi et aenigmata: able to solve the p.s of the law and the riddles of the statutes, qui juris nodos et legum aenigmata solvat, Juv. 8, 50.

2. quaestĭo, ōnis, f.: an intellectual or dialectic p.: to be able to solve all p.s, omnes solvere posse quaestiones, Bibacul. in Suet. Gramm. 11: a very hard p., perdifficilis et perobscura q., Cic. N. D. 1, 1 (adapted): obscurissima et implicatissima q., Gell. 6, 2: also dim. quaestiuncŭla: to propose a p., q. ponere, Cic. de Or. 1, 22, 103: cf. Quint. 1, 3, 11, sunt etiam nonnulli acuendis puerorum ingeniis non inutiles lusus, cum positis invicem cujuscunque generis quaestiunculis aemulantur (they vie in putting p.s to one another): esp., lusoria quaestio: (Diodorus died of shame) because he did not at once solve a p. asked by Stilpo, lusoria quaestione non protinus ad interrogationem Stilponis dissoluta, Plin. 7, 53, 54: to solve a p. (besides solvĕre and dissolvere), explicare q., by anal. fr. captiones (sophisms) expl., Cic. Div. 2, 17, 41: and by the same analogy, to discuss p.s, q. discutere, id. Acad. 2, 15, 46: the solution of a p., solutio (or dissolutio) quaestionis lusoriae (cf. sol. cap. soph., Gell. 18, 2). Phr. to be a p. hard to solve: cf. Cic. N. D. 3, 39, 93, quam esset obscura et quam difficiles explicatus haberet.

3. lūsus, ūs, m., a game: (a) for a verbal p., Quint. l. sup. cit. (b) gen. term for a p. forming a toy or game: by anal. fr. l. calculorum, Plin. Ep. 7, 24: l. XII. scriptorum (al. scruporum), Quint. 11, 2, 38. cf. irritandae ad discendum infantiae gratia eburneas literarum formas in lusum offerre, id. 1, 1, 26 the Chinese p. (perhaps). *lusus geometricus Sinarum: a dissected p., a mosaic p., *lusus sectĭlis (by anal. fr. sect. pavimenta, Vitr. 7, 1: Suet. Caes. 46, fin.): cf. GAME.

II. A DIFFICULTY, PERPLEXITY, state of CONFUSION: difficultas, res difficiles, angustiae, dubitatio: also nōdus: we had got into a sad p., incideramus in difficilem nodum, Coel. ap. Cic. Fam. 8, 11: cf. Cic. Quint. 5, in summas angustias adduci. Phr.: it's a p., haeret haec res, Pl. Ps. 4, 2, 28.

puzzle (v. a.):

1. impĕdĭo, ĭi or īvi, ītum, 4: cf. tot me impediunt curae, Ter. And. 1, 5, 25: v. TO EMBARRASS.

2. dŭbĭum făcĕre, 3: what is there in this case to p. any one? quae res est, quae cujusquam animum in hac causa dubium facere possit? Cic. Manil. 10 (adapted). Also dubium habēre. cf. Ov. F. 6, 572, dubium me quoque mentis habet.

3. scrupulum alicui injicio: I've p.d the fellow, injeci scrupulum homini, Ter. Ad. 2, 2, 20: cf. Cic. Clu. 28, 76, hic tum injectus est hominibus scrupulus et quaedam dubitatio, quidnam esset actum, (men were p.d and doubtful).

4. torquĕo, si, tum, 2 (as a very strong term): cf. verbi controversia tam diu torquet Graeculos homines, Cic. de Or. 1, 11, 47: equidem dies noctesque torqueor, id. Att. 7, 9: v. TO RACK.

5. turbo, 1, and comps. conturbo, obturbo: v. TO CONFUSE; TO TROUBLE.

puzzle (v. n.): esp. to p. over (a thing): and to be p.d; to be in a puzzle:

1. non habeo, quid (with subj.): I am p.d what to do about the boys, de pueris quid agam non habeo, Cic. Att. 7, 19: he was p.d how to answer this, quid huic responderet non habebat, id. 12, 26.

2. haereo, si, sum, 2: alone: the rascal was p.d, haerebat nebulo: quo se verteret non habebat, id Phil. 2, 29, 74: with abl.: cf. quum haerent aliquo loco (when they're p.d at any point), id. Acad. 2, 5, 14: gen. with in to p. over (or be p.d by) a fallacy, in captione h., Gell. 16, 2: with circa: the most eloquent orator has once p.d over his letters, futurus eloquentissimus haesit aliquando circa formas literarum, Quint. 1, 1, 21. Also freq. haesĭto, 1: cf. in novis rebus haes., Cic. Acad. 2, 5, 15: ut deliberare non haesitare videamur, Quint. 10, 7, 22.

3. dŭbĭto, 1 dŭbĭus sum: incertus sum: v. TO DOUBT; (to be in) DOUBT; DOUBTFUL: I'm p.d what to do, dubius sum quid faciam, Hor. S. 1, 9, 40.