jigsaw puzzle

[ jig-saw puhz-uhl ]

noun

1. Also called picture puzzle. a set of irregularly cut pieces of pasteboard, wood, or the like that form a picture or design when fitted together.
2. any complex, confusing situation, condition, or item, as one composed of seemingly diverse or unrelated elements.

jigsaw puzzle

noun

1. a puzzle in which the player has to reassemble a picture that has been mounted on a wooden or cardboard base and cut into a large number of irregularly shaped interlocking pieces

Word History and Origins

Origin of jigsaw puzzle¹

First recorded in 1905–10

Example Sentences

The OSA is just one part of a global jigsaw puzzle of laws and legal action.

From BBC

An abandoned jigsaw puzzle was unfinished at the dining room table, and children’s drawings and a note in red crayon wishing for a “wonderful life” clung to the refrigerator.

From Los Angeles Times

Matthew Knight, senior curator of prehistory at National Museums Scotland, said the project had been "essentially a jigsaw puzzle."

From BBC

It means Ten Hag won't be able to start working out this jigsaw puzzle he is trying to put together.

From BBC

“If you think about British biodiversity like a jigsaw puzzle - all the pieces are really important, but some are missing,” he says.

From BBC