boggle

Pronunciation

• (UK) IPA ^(key): /ˈbɒɡ.əl/
• (US) IPA ^(key): /ˈbɑ.ɡəl/

• Audio (AU)

  (file)

Verb

Plain form boggle

Third-person singular boggles

Past tense boggled

Past participle boggled

Present participle boggling

1. (transitive & intransitive) If you boggle, you either literally or figuratively to stop or hesitate.

   The dogs went on, but the horse boggled at the sudden appearance of the strange beast.

   The horror of the deed and its consequences boggle the imagination.

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

   He boggled at the surprising news.

   The mind boggles.

3. (transitive) If you boggle someone, you confuse them.
   • Synonym: overwhelm

   The vastness of space really boggles the mind.

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