mystery: applies to what cannot be fully understood by human reason or less strictly to whatever resists or defies explanation: the ~ of the stone monoliths on Easter Island. 单块巨石,独石柱 复活节岛
problem: applies to any question or difficulty calling for a solution or causing concern: the ~s created by high technology.
enigma: applies to an utterance or behavior that is difficult to interpret: his suicide was an ~ his family never understood.
riddle: suggests an enigma or problem involving paradox or apparent contradiction: the ~ of the reclusive billionaire.
puzzle: applies to an enigma or problem involving paradox or apparent contradiction that challenges ingenuity for its solution: the mechanisms of heredity were long a ~ for scientists. (ingenious聪敏suggests brilliance or cleverness in inventing or discovering能够聪明地发明发现,如an ingenious computer engineer一个聪敏的电脑工程师)
conundrum: applies to a riddle or puzzle whose answer involves a pun or less often to a problem whose solution can only be speculative: posed ~s to which there are no practical solutions. (pun双关语,用一个词表示多种含义,如the only thing we have to fear is fear丘吉尔:我们唯一需要畏惧的是胆怯,用了fear的两个意思;如why is a river rich? because it has two banks是一道脑筋急转弯,bank河岸或银行;如we must all hang together or we shall all hang separately我们必须团结起来,否则会被一个个吊死,是对hang的双关,分别表示团结一致和吊死)
mystery神秘: 指无法通过推理来理解解释的,problem问题: 泛指需要关注解决的问题困难,enigma迷: 指难以解释的言行,riddle迷:指自相矛盾的迷或问题,puzzle难题: 同上,挑战人的聪敏,conundrum无解难题: 指答案带有双关,只能猜测无法解决的迷或难题
记忆方法: 1)首字母MPERPC想成ME Plus PRC我和中国<==神秘
2)神秘的意思是令人困惑的mean something which baffles or perplexes. (perplex表示困惑时比baffle程度重,baffle仅表示疑惑不解to confuse, puzzle,但perplex到了让人worry担心的地步,如an odd change of personality that perplexes her friends她性格突变,令朋友十分困惑.,有词典把perplex解释为十分困惑to feel completely baffled,又如he perplexed me with this problem他用这个问题难住了我)
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