jigsaw puzzle

IPA/ˈdʒɪɡ.sɔː ˌpʌz.əl/
IPA/ˈdʒɪɡ.sɑː ˌpʌz.əl/

jigsaw puzzle — noun

1. many small oddly-shaped cardboard pieces which, when fitted together the right w

1.名詞A2
釋義

many small oddly-shaped cardboard pieces which, when fitted together the right way, form a single complete picture

例句

Nora spent the whole afternoon working on a jigsaw puzzle of a mountain lake.

collocation: working on a jigsaw puzzle

The children spread all the jigsaw puzzle pieces across the living room carpet.

collocation: jigsaw puzzle pieces

同義詞
  • puzzle

    broader term that includes jigsaw puzzles, crosswords, and other types

  • jigsaw

    informal short form; can also refer to the saw itself

用法筆記

Commonly used with verbs such as 'do', 'work on', 'put together', 'complete', and 'finish'. The number of pieces is often mentioned (e.g., 'a 500-piece jigsaw puzzle').

常見錯誤

❌I made a jigsaw puzzle yesterday.
✅I did a jigsaw puzzle yesterday.
💡In English, you 'do' or 'work on' a jigsaw puzzle, not 'make' one.
❌jigsaw
✅jigsaw puzzle
💡When talking about the game, 'jigsaw' alone is sometimes ambiguous; 'jigsaw puzzle' is the standard term.

2. a mystery or difficult situation which requires collecting and connecting separa

2.名詞B2
釋義

a mystery or difficult situation which requires collecting and connecting separate facts before anyone can make sense of it

例句

The detective saw each new clue as another piece of the jigsaw puzzle.

figurative: piece of the jigsaw puzzle

For the scientists, the rare disease was a jigsaw puzzle they solved piece by piece.

同義詞
  • mystery

    more general; does not emphasise the need to connect separate pieces

  • conundrum

    more formal; often implies a puzzling question or riddle

  • enigma

    more literary; suggests something deeply mysterious and hard to explain

反義詞
  • solution

    the answer or explanation that resolves the puzzle

用法筆記

This figurative sense is almost always singular and used with an indefinite article ('a jigsaw puzzle'). Common contexts include detective work, scientific research, and historical investigation.