謎|なぞnazo[0]heiban (flat)

1. nounriddle; puzzle; enigma; mystery
   このなぞの答こたえを考かんがえつきますか。↗

   Can you guess this riddle?
2. no-adjectiveenigmatic; mysterious

• SynonymなぞなぞNeutralA guessing game, as in 「なぞなぞを出す」 — entertainment. 「謎」 also refers to matters whose truth is unknown.
• SynonymパズルNeutralA loanword for jigsaws and brain-teaser games you solve by thinking. 「謎」 usually means an unsolved mystery rather than a game.
• SynonymミステリーNeutralA loanword for mysteries; more often the detective-fiction genre, as in 「ミステリー小説」.
• Synonym不可思議ふかしぎWrittenMore written and stronger than 「不思議」; often seen in 「摩訶不思議」.
• Synonym不可解ふかかいWrittenDescribes what defies understanding, as in 「不可解な行動」, with a nuance of suspicion or puzzlement; 「謎」 is a noun.
• Synonym怪かいWrittenSomething eerie or bizarre, mostly in titles like 「～の怪」; has a strong written flavor.
• SynonymエニグマWrittenA loanword for something hard to fathom; written style and rare. In everyday speech, say 「謎」.
• Synonym判じ物はんじものWrittenA game of hiding meaning in characters or pictures for others to guess, like the Edo-period 「判じ絵」; a written-style word.
• RelatedジグソーパズルNeutralThe jigsaw-puzzle toy — a concrete game. It overlaps with 「謎」 only in that something must be solved.
• Related難問なんもんNeutralA difficult problem to solve, as in 「難問に挑む」; stresses difficulty, while 「謎」 stresses an unknown cause or truth.
• Related不思議ふしぎNeutralDescribes something strange or inexplicable, as in 「不思議な話」; 「謎」 is a noun for the unsolved matter itself.
• Related神秘しんぴWrittenAn awe-inspiring mystery beyond human understanding, as in 「宇宙の神秘」; carries a solemn, reverent tone; written style.
• Related当て物あてものNeutralA guessing game or the lottery at old-fashioned candy shops; has an old-time flavor and is rarely used today.
• Related考え物かんがえものNeutralMostly means something debatable or problematic, as in 「それは考え物だ」; its use for riddles is now rare.
• Antonym真相しんそうNeutralThe true facts of an event; uncovering a 「謎」 yields the 「真相」, as in 「真相を明かす」.
• Antonym答えこたえNeutralThe answer to a question or riddle, opposed to the unsolved 「謎」, as in 「謎の答えを探す」; a riddle's solution is always written 「答え」, never 「応え」.

Use 「謎」 for something whose truth or cause is unknown. For the guessing game say 「なぞなぞ」, for logic puzzles 「パズル」. Describe strange things with 「不思議」 and the incomprehensible with 「不可解」; 「神秘」 adds a solemn, awe-struck nuance, and 「ミステリー」 often names the detective genre. Solving a 「謎」 reveals the 「真相」 or its 「答え」.

Usage comparisons are AI-assisted and cross-checked by multiple models; for study reference only

1. （なぞ）物事ものごとの真相しんそうやある事象じしょうの原因げんいんが不明ふめいであること。