Enigma comes from a Greek word that means "to speak in riddles." It applies to things, as well as to people, that puzzle one's mind. Egypt's ancient pyramids and quantum mechanics, for example, might be described as enigmas, as well as physicist Stephen Hawking.

ENIGMA definition: 1. something that is mysterious and seems impossible to understand completely: 2. something that…. Learn more.

ENIGMA meaning: 1. something that is mysterious and seems impossible to understand completely: 2. something that…. Learn more.

a saying, question, picture, etc., containing a hidden meaning; riddle. (initial capital letter) a German-built enciphering machine developed for commercial use in the early 1920s and later …

enigma - something that baffles understanding and cannot be explained; "how it got out is a mystery"; "it remains one of nature's secrets"

Traveling to English from Greek by means of the Latin word for "riddle," enigma refers to something or someone that is mysterious, puzzling, or difficult to figure out. Many things have been named Enigma, including a rock band, a video game, a rollercoaster ride, and a very famous coding machine used in World War II.

If you describe something or someone as an enigma, you mean they are mysterious or difficult to understand. There have been whole books written about him, and still he remains an enigma.