bafflement

Noun

bafflement (countable and uncountable, plural bafflements)

1. (uncountable) The result or state of being baffled, confused, or puzzled; a shocked feeling of perplexed bewilderment, caused by being utterly unable to understand something or to move on from one's incomprehension.
   • My bafflement at being caught in this situation made it hard to come up with a way out.
   • "Have you any theory about this occurrence to-night?" She watched him eagerly as she asked the question. He made a gesture of bafflement. "None whatever—it's beyond me," he confessed.1920, Mary Roberts Rinehart, Avery Hopwood, chapter XII, in The Bat: A Novel from the Play (Dell Book; 241), New York, N.Y.: Dell Publishing Company, →OCLC

   Synonyms:

   baffle, bewilderment

   Antonyms:

   clarity

2. (countable) Something that causes a state of confusion or puzzlement.
   • The cartoon characters on the front cover, the irritatingly meaningless track names . . . make it seem like a concept album about global warming for kids. Since the lyrics remain a bafflement, it might well be.2005 December 16, Josh Tyrangiel, “Best of 2005: Music”, in Time, New York, N.Y.: Time Inc., →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 13 Sep 2006