as in mystery
something hard to understand or explain
the conundrum of how an ancient people were able to build such massive structures without the benefit of today's knowledge and technology
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Recent Examples of conundrum
Those qualities aren’t the ones commonly associated with Bessette Kennedy, who has long presented a conundrum for journalists.
—
Daniel D'addario, Variety, 3 Feb. 2026
Invasion, so far, has been unable to find a creative way out of this conundrum.
—New Atlas, 28 Jan. 2026
Time will tell if the streak continues, but long term, auction houses have a conundrum to solve.
—Jacqui Palumbo, CNN Money, 27 Jan. 2026
Alexey Miranchuk wasn’t aware that manager Gerardo Martino has repeatedly complimented him any time he has been asked about the conundrum of he and Miguel Almirón playing together.
—Doug Roberson, AJC.com, 26 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for conundrum
Daniel D'addario, Variety, 3 Feb. 2026
Invasion, so far, has been unable to find a creative way out of this conundrum.
—New Atlas, 28 Jan. 2026
Time will tell if the streak continues, but long term, auction houses have a conundrum to solve.
—Jacqui Palumbo, CNN Money, 27 Jan. 2026
Alexey Miranchuk wasn’t aware that manager Gerardo Martino has repeatedly complimented him any time he has been asked about the conundrum of he and Miguel Almirón playing together.
—Doug Roberson, AJC.com, 26 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for conundrum
Recent Examples of Synonyms for conundrum
Noun
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While scientists have long observed this liquid-to-solid transformation, the exact molecular link that converts these fluid droplets into a high-performance final structure has remained a mystery until now.—
Mrigakshi Dixit,
Interesting Engineering,
6 Feb. 2026
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Ward said her mother was fascinated with the mystery of Amelia Earhart, and that fascination turned into countless trips to air shows and museums.—
Kels Dayton,
Hartford Courant,
5 Feb. 2026
Noun
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Speaking of enigmas, Katie Zelem plays for West Ham now on loan after less than five months with London City.—
Megan Feringa,
New York Times,
4 Feb. 2026
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Yet despite their impressive size, encounters with these enigmas remain exceedingly rare due to the myriad of challenges of studying deep-sea sharks.—
Melissa Cristina Márquez,
Forbes.com,
29 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Conundrum.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/conundrum. Accessed 15 Feb. 2026.
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