Synonyms for cryptic
- adjective
Most common
Synonyms by meaning
Adjective
1. Mysterious
mysterious, inscrutable, esoteric, mystifying, incomprehensible, abstruse formal, dark, secret, hidden, inexplicable, mystic, occult, deep, cryptical, enigmatic, obscure, recondite, arcane, mystical, profound, unfathomable, concealed
2. Kabbalistic
Other
Definitions
- adj. 1
Having hidden (unapparent) meaning.
- adj. 2
Mystified or of an obscure nature; not easy to perceive.
Related words
- Word family
- crypto
- Phrases
- cryptic ovulation
Example sentences
- mysterious A mysterious spaceship was flying away from Earth.
- esoteric Kabbalah is an esoteric tradition within Judaism.
- inscrutable She looked at him with an inscrutable expression.
Popularity over time
| Word | 1850 → 2019 | Trend |
|---|---|---|
| cryptic | rising | |
| mysterious | rising | |
| esoteric | rising | |
| inscrutable | rising | |
| mystifying | rising | |
| cryptozoic | falling |
Use in printed books, per decade from 1850 to 2019.
By length
- 4 letters
- dark1, deep1
- 6 letters
- secret2, hidden2, mystic2, occult2, arcane2
- 7 letters
- obscure2
- 8 letters
- profound2, mystical3, esoteric4, abstruse2
- 9 letters
- concealed2, enigmatic4, recondite3, sibylline, cryptical
- 10 letters
- mysterious4, mystifying4, cryptozoic
- 11 letters
- inscrutable4, kabbalistic
- 12 letters
- inexplicable5, unfathomable5
The small number after each word is its number of syllables (secret2 = 2 syllables).