Synonyms for mysterious
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Puzzling
puzzling, enigmatic, perplexing, strange, baffling, inexplicable, insoluble, unaccountable, inscrutable, confounding, shrouded in mystery; see also difficult 2, unnatural 1.
Concerning powers beyond those supposedly natural
mystic, mystical, occult, mystifying, inscrutable, arcane, transcendental, cabalistic, spiritual, magical, abstruse, dark, veiled, strange, alchemistic, supernormal, necromantic, astrological, unknowable, unfathomable, ineffable, esoteric, numinous, cryptic, oracular, unrevealed; see also magic 1, secret 1.
Not generally known
obscure, hidden, ambiguous; see obscure 1, secret 1.
mysterious is applied to that which excites curiosity, wonder, etc. but is impossible or difficult to explain or solve a mysterious murder; what is inscrutable is completely mysterious and altogether incapable of being searched out, interpreted, or understood the inscrutable ways of God; mystical or mystic applies to that which is beyond ordinary human understanding or perception in connection with religious rites or spiritual experience
See mysterious in American Heritage Dictionary 4 Synonyms
mysterious esoteric arcane occult inscrutable
These adjectives mean beyond human power to explain or understand. Something mysterious arouses wonder and inquisitiveness: “The sea lies all about us᠁ In its mysterious past it encompasses all the dim origins of life” (Rachel Carson).
What is esoteric is mysterious because only a select group knows and understands it: a compilation of esoteric philosophical essays.
Arcane applies to what is hidden from general knowledge: arcane economic theories.
Occult suggests knowledge reputedly gained only by secret, magical, or supernatural means: an occult rite.
Something that is inscrutable cannot be fathomed by means of investigation or scrutiny: “It is not for me to attempt to fathom the inscrutable workings of Providence” (Earl of Birkenhead).
See mysterious in Webster's New World Roget's A-Z Thesaurus II
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