Word.ws English Dictionary

head-scratching

Syllables: head·scratch·ingUK/ˈhɛdskɹatʃɪŋ/US/ˈhɛdskɹætʃɪŋ/

head-scratching adjective: confusing, perplexing, puzzling.

head-scratching: confusing, perplexing, puzzling
Image: scanned by Open Clip Art Library user Johnny Automatic, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

Adjective

head-scratching (comparative more head-scratching, superlative most head-scratching)

  1. (idiomatic) Confusing, perplexing, puzzling.
    • He became for a short time delirious, in consequence of attempting to comprehend the works of Mr. Nebulous, in which the English language is exhibited casting of summersets, with many prancings to and fro, before earnest-gazing, head-scratching readers, in murkiest obscuration, marvel stricken...1849 June, Michael South, “The Peace Campaigns of Ensign Faunce. [Part III. Chapter XIV.]”, in Fraser’s Magazine for Town and Country, volume XXXIX, number CCXXXIV, London: John W[illiam] Parker...
    • Yogi Berra is best known as a Hall of Fame catcher with the 1950s Yankees and for spouting head-scratching malapropisms such as "Ninety per cent of the game is half mental," but he also was a solid baseball man with good managerial instincts.2009, Frederick C. Klein, For the Love of the Mets: An A-to-Z Primer for Mets Fans of All Ages, Chicago, Ill.: Triumph Books, →OCLC

Noun

head-scratching (plural head-scratchings)

  1. (idiomatic) Confusion.
    • […] Milly got out of her basket to reconsider the matter. It took some deliberation and head scratching to decide the best method; […]1869 April, Carl Bernard, “Milly’s Bossy”, in Ballou’s Monthly Magazine, volume XXIX, number 4 (number 172 overall), Boston, Mass.: Office American Union, Flag of Our Union, and Novelette, No. 63...
    • You remember what a lot of head-scratching the kings had to go through in order to raise money. When there was no extensive and well-developed system of taxation, they were never sure of getting enough cash where they needed it when they needed it.1936, Leo Huberman, “‘Gold, Greatness, and Glory’”, in Man’s Worldly Goods: The Story of the Wealth of Nations, New York, N.Y.: Monthly Review Press, →OCLC, page 134

Synonyms of head-scratching

Forms of head-scratching

Adjective
comparativemore head-scratching
superlativemost head-scratching
alternative formhead scratching
Noun
pluralhead-scratchings

Origin of head-scratching

head + scratching, from the fact that many people scratch the side of their head when confused.

Questions about head-scratching

What does head-scratching mean?
Head-scratching means confusing, perplexing, puzzling.
What part of speech is head-scratching?
Head-scratching can be an adjective or a noun.
How do you pronounce head-scratching?
Head-scratching is pronounced /ˈhɛdskɹatʃɪŋ/ (UK).

Words near head-scratching in the dictionary

  1. head-rings
  2. head-scarf
  3. head-scarves
  4. head-scratcher
  5. head-scratchers
  6. head-scratching
  7. head-scratchings
  8. head-shrinker
  9. head-shrinkers
  10. head-shy
  11. Head-Smashed-In

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: head-scratching (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

Last updated:

Pronunciation audio from Wikimedia Commons, each file under its own free license: en-au-head-scratching.ogg.

Cite this entry: “head-scratching.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/head-scratching. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.