boggle

WOTD – 24 June 2009    

English

Pronunciation

• (UK) IPA: /ˈbɒɡ.əl/
• (US) IPA: /ˈbɑ.ɡəl/
• Rhymes: -ɒɡəl

Verb

boggle (third-person singular simple present boggles, present participle boggling, simple past and past participle boggled)

1. (intransitive) To be bewildered, dumbfounded, or confused.

   He boggled at the surprising news.

   The mind boggles.

2. (transitive) To confuse or mystify; overwhelm.

   The vastness of space really boggles the mind.

   The oddities of quantum mechanics can boggle the minds of students and experienced physicists alike.

3. (US, dialect) To embarrass with difficulties; to bungle or botch.

Derived terms

• mindboggling

Translations

to be bewildered, dumbfounded, or confused

• Bulgarian: стряскам се (bg) (strjaskam se), плаша се (bg) (plaša se)
• Catalan: confondre's (ca), estar confós (ca)
• Czech: být (cs) zmaten (cs)
• Dutch: verbijsterd zijn (nl), in de war zijn (nl)

• Finnish: tyrmistyttää (fi), kummastuttaa (fi)
• French: être époustouflé (fr), être confus (fr)
• Russian: пугаться, поражаться
• Scottish Gaelic: clisg (gd)

to confuse or mystify; overwhelm

• Bulgarian: стряскам (bg) (strjaskam), плаша (bg) (plaša)
• Czech: zmást (cs)
• Dutch: verwarren (nl), overdonderen (nl)
• Finnish: tyrmistyttää (fi), kummastuttaa (fi)

• French: troubler (fr), épater (fr)
• Russian: поражать, изумлять
• Scottish Gaelic: breislich (gd)