Describing Complexity: English Vocabulary List

full of complications or difficulties

"This is a knotty problem."

"The carpenter had to solve a knotty problem with the wood grain before he could finish the cabinet and deliver it to the customer."

so detailed and complex that understanding becomes difficult

"The rules are byzantine."

"The tax code is so byzantine that even accountants have difficulty understanding all of the rules and regulations without specialized training."

causing bewilderment or surprise

"The results are confounding."

"The confounding results of the experiment led the scientists to question their initial hypothesis and they decided to redesign the study from scratch."

extremely difficult or seemingly impossible to understand or interpret due to its unclear intent or cause

"Her face is inscrutable."

"The old man's face was inscrutable and nobody could tell whether he was happy or sad because he never showed any emotion."

lacking clarity or coherence

"His thinking is muddled."

"The student's essay was muddled and confusing so the teacher asked him to rewrite it with a clearer structure and better organization."

impossible to comprehend

"The mystery is unfathomable."

"The depths of the ocean are unfathomable to humans without special equipment and many species remain undiscovered in the dark waters."

difficult to understand due to being complex or obscure

"The lecture was abstruse."

"The professor's lectures were so abstruse that only a few students could follow his complex arguments without extensive background knowledge."

difficult to understand or interpret

"He is enigmatic."

"The Mona Lisa's enigmatic smile has puzzled art historians for centuries and nobody knows exactly what Leonardo da Vinci intended to convey."

complicated or difficult to follow, like a maze

"The plot is labyrinthine."

"The labyrinthine corridors of the old castle made it easy to get lost and the tourists were advised to stay with their guide at all times."

difficult to understand or obscure to most people due to its complexity

"Her knowledge is recondite."

"The scholar's recondite knowledge of ancient languages allowed him to translate texts that had been unreadable for hundreds of years."

designed to be so simple that even someone with little knowledge or skill can use it without making mistakes

"This device is idiot-proof."

"The new software is idiot-proof with simple buttons and clear instructions so anyone can use it without training."

(of sentences, explanations, arguments, etc.) long and difficult to understand, often due to complexity or excessive detail

"His explanation is convoluted."

"The detective had to untangle a convoluted web of lies before he could finally identify the real killer in the complicated murder case."