Boggle

Part of speech: verb

Pronunciation: /ˈbɒɡ.əl/

Definitions

1. To hesitate or be confused, especially due to uncertainty or surprise ; to overwhelm or stupefy someone, causing them to be unable to think clearly
2. To become uncertain or falter mentally because of doubt or astonishment ; to shock or perplex someone so much that they lose their composure
3. To show sudden confusion or inability to act clearly because of surprise or difficulty ; to stun or bewilder a person, making it hard to respond or understand

Etymology: The verb "boggle" grew out of "bogle," a Scottish and northern English word for a ghost or goblin, the kind of spirit that frightens travellers off their path. The idea of a bogle that startles or confuses a person survives in the verb, which at first suggested shying away in fear, like a horse balking at something in the road, before it came to mean being thrown into bewildered hesitation. The link to "bogle" is one of variation and derivation, and the two words may also share a root with "bug," though that connection is less certain. The sense of "stun into confusion" is the one most people now know, as in a problem that boggles the mind. The image is of a mind that stalls and refuses to move forward, much as a startled animal would.

Synonyms: bewilder, confound, daze, stun, shock

Antonyms: clarify, explain, illuminate