mystery

English

Etymology

From Middle English mysterie, from Anglo-Norman misterie (Old French mistere), from Latin mysterium, from Ancient Greek μυστήριον (mustḗrion, “a mystery, a secret, a secret rite”), from μύστης (mústēs, “initiated one”), from μυέω (muéō, “I initiate”), from μύω (múō, “I shut”). Displaced native Old English ġerȳne.

Pronunciation

enPR: mĭsʹtərē, mĭsʹtrē, IPA^(key): /ˈmɪstəɹi/, /ˈmɪstɹi/
Audio (US) (file)
Rhymes: -ɪstəɹi
Hyphenation: mys‧te‧ry, myst‧ery

Noun

mystery (countable and uncountable, plural mysteries)

Something secret or unexplainable; an unknown.
The truth behind the events remains a mystery.
- 1927, F. E. Penny, chapter 4, in Pulling the Strings:
  The case was that of a murder. It had an element of mystery about it, however, which was puzzling the authorities. A turban and loincloth soaked in blood had been found; also a staff.
Someone or something with an obscure or puzzling nature.
That man is a mystery.
- 1905, Baroness Emmuska Orczy, chapter 5, in The Hocussing of Cigarette‎:
  Then I had a good think on the subject of the hocussing of Cigarette, and I was reluctantly bound to admit that once again the man in the corner had found the only possible solution to the mystery.
(obsolete) A secret or mystical meaning.
- 1567, Matteo Bandello, Certain Tragical Discourses of Bandello, tr. Geffraie Fenton:
  ...and, not knowing the meaning or misterie of her pollicie, forgat no termes of reproche or rigorous rebuke against his chast doughter.
A religious truth not understandable by the application of human reason alone (without divine aid).
- 1744 (first printed), Jonathan Swift, A Sermon on the Trinity
  If God should please to reveal unto us this great mystery of the Trinity, or some other mysteries in our holy religion, we should not be able to understand them, unless he would bestow on us some new faculties of the mind.
(archaic outside Eastern Orthodoxy) A sacrament.
- 1809, Sir Robert Ker Porter, Travelling Sketches in Russia and Sweden: During the Years 1805, 1806, 1807, 1808:
  There are seven mysteries, or sacraments, in the Greek church, viz. baptism, the chrism (a rite peculiar to this church), the eucharist, confession, ordination, marriage, and the holy oil.
(chiefly in the plural) A secret religious celebration, admission to which was usually through initiation.
the Eleusinian mysteries
the Mysteries of Mithras
- 1899 February, Joseph Conrad, “The Heart of Darkness”, in Blackwood’s Edinburgh Magazine, volume CLXV, number M, New York, N.Y.: The Leonard Scott Publishing Company, […], OCLC 1042815524, part I, page 196:
  There’s no initiation either into such mysteries.
(Catholicism) A particular event or series of events in the life of Christ.
The second decade of the Rosary concerns the Sorrowful mysteries, such as the crucifixion and the crowning with thorns.
A craft, art or trade; specifically a guild of craftsmen.[1]
- 1776, Adam Smith, An Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations
  The trades, the crafts, the mysteries, would all be losers.

Synonyms

roun (obsolete)

Derived terms

Terms derived from mystery

dramystery
mysterious
mystery play

Related terms

Terms etymologically related to mystery

mystic
mystical
mysticism
mystify
mystique

Translations

something secret or unexplainable

Albanian: mister (sq) m
Arabic: سِرّ‎ (ar) m (sirr)
Armenian: գաղտնիք (hy) (gałtnikʿ), առեղծված (hy) (aṙełcvac)
Assamese: please add this translation if you can
Asturian: misteriu m
Azerbaijani: sirr (az)
Basque: misterio
Belarusian: таямні́ца f (tajamníca), зага́дка f (zahádka)
Bengali: রহস্য (bn) (rôhôsẏ)
Breton: kevrin (br) m
Bulgarian: мисте́рия (bg) f (mistérija), та́йна (bg) f (tájna)
Burmese: စကားထာ (my) (ca.ka:hta)
Catalan: misteri (ca) m
Cebuano: tugahala
Chinese:
Cantonese: 神祕, 神秘 (san⁴ bei³)
Mandarin: 神祕／神秘 (zh) (shénmì)
Min Nan: 神祕 (zh-min-nan), 神秘 (sîn-pì)
Min Nan: 神奇 (zh-min-nan) (sîn-kî)
Czech: záhada (cs) f
Danish: mysterium n
Dutch: mysterie (nl) n
Esperanto: mistero (eo)
Estonian: müsteerium
Finnish: salaisuus (fi)
French: mystère (fr) m
Galician: misterio m
Georgian: საიდუმლოება (saidumloeba), ხვაშიადი (xvašiadi)
German: Geheimnis (de) n, Rätsel (de) n
Gothic: 𐍂𐌿𐌽𐌰 f (runa)
Greek: μυστήριο (el) n (mystírio)
Ancient: μυστήριον n (mustḗrion)
Hebrew: תַּעֲלוּמָה‎ (he) f (ta'aluma)
Hindi: रहस्य (hi) f (rahasya), राज़ m (rāz), राज (hi) m (rāj), मुअम्मा (hi) m (muammā), सेर (hi) m (ser)
Hungarian: rejtély (hu)
Icelandic: ráðgáta f
Indonesian: misteri (id)
Italian: mistero (it) m, arcano (it) m, enigma (it) m
Japanese: ミステリー (misuterī), 不思議 (ja) (ふしぎ, fushigi), 神秘 (ja) (しんぴ, shinpi)
Kalmyk: нууц (nuuts)
Kannada: please add this translation if you can
Kapampangan: duwala
Kazakh: құпия (qūpiä), сыр (kk) (syr)
Khmer: អាថ៌កំបាំង (ʼaat kɑmbang)
Korean: 신비(神秘) (ko) (sinbi), 미스터리 (miseuteori)
Kurdish:
Northern Kurdish: sir (ku), raz (ku), sirr (ku), surr (ku)
Kyrgyz: сыр (ky) (sır)
Lao: ຄວາມລຶກລັບ (khuām lưk lap)
Latin: mysterium n, obscuritas, occulta, naturae sacra, arcanum n
Latvian: noslēpums m, mistērija f
Lithuanian: paslaptis m, misterija f
Macedonian: та́јна f (tájna), за́гатка f (zágatka), мисте́рија f (mistérija)
Malay: misteri
Maltese: misteru m
Maori: mea ngaro, pirikoko, pirikoko
Mongolian:
Cyrillic: нууц (mn) (nuuc)
Mongolian: ᠨᠢᠭᠤᠴᠠ (niɣuča)
Nepali: रहस्य (rahasya)
Norman: mystéthe m
Norwegian:
Bokmål: mysterium n
Occitan: mistèri (oc) m
Old English: ġerȳne n
Oriya: please add this translation if you can
Pashto: سر‎ (ps) m (sar), راز‎ (ps) m (rāz), نوز‎ m (nawz), اسرار‎ (ps) m pl (asrãr)
Persian: راز‎ (fa) (râz), معما‎ (fa) (mo'ammâ), سر‎ (fa) (serr)
Plautdietsch: Jeheemniss n
Polish: tajemnica (pl) f, misterium (pl) n
Portuguese: mistério (pt) m
Punjabi: please add this translation if you can
Romanian: mister (ro) n
Russian: та́йна (ru) f (tájna), зага́дка (ru) f (zagádka)
Serbo-Croatian:
Cyrillic: та̑јна f, за̏гоне̄тка f, мѝсте̄рӣј m
Roman: tajna (sh) f, zagonetka (sh) f, mìstērīj (sh) m
Slovak: záhada f
Slovene: skrivnost (sl) n
Spanish: misterio (es) m, arcano (es)
Swahili: siri (sw), kilinge (sw)
Swedish: mysterium (sv) n, mystär (sv) c
Tagalog: hiwaga (tl)
Tajik: роз (roz), муаммо (tg) (muammo), сир (tg) (sir)
Tamil: மர்மம் (ta) (marmam)
Telugu: please add this translation if you can
Thai: ความลี้ลับ (kwaam-líi-láp)
Tibetan: please add this translation if you can
Turkish: gizem (tr), esrâr, sır (tr)
Turkmen: syr
Ukrainian: тає́мниця (uk) f (tajémnycja), зага́дка (uk) f (zahádka)
Urdu: راز‎ m (rāz), سر‎ (ur) m (sirr)
Uyghur: سىر‎ (sir)
Uzbek: sir (uz)
Vietnamese: bí ẩn (vi), huyền bí (vi)
Volapük: müster (vo), rätöf (vo)
Welsh: dirgelwch f
Yiddish: מיסטעריע‎ f (misterye)
Zulu: zinga

someone or thing with an obscure or puzzling nature

Arabic: غُمُوض‎ m (ḡumūḍ)
Armenian: առեղծված (hy) (aṙełcvac)
Bulgarian: зага́дка (bg) f (zagádka)
Chinese:
Mandarin: 神秘 (zh) (shénmì)
Danish: mysterium n
Finnish: arvoitus (fi)
German: Rätsel (de) n
Greek:
Ancient: μυστήριον n (mustḗrion)
Italian: mistero (it) m, enigma (it) m, rebus (it) m
Macedonian: за́гатка f (zágatka)
Portuguese: mistério (pt) m
Russian: зага́дка (ru) f (zagádka)
Serbo-Croatian:
Cyrillic: мѝсте̄рӣј m
Roman: mìstērīj (sh) m

an event in the life of Jesus used as a focus for devotions

Bulgarian: мисте́рия (bg) f (mistérija)
Italian: mistero (it) m
Macedonian: мисте́рија f (mistérija)
Maori: mihiteria
Russian: мисте́рия (ru) f (mistérija)

The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.

Translations to be checked

Ancient Greek: ^{(please verify)} μυστήριον n (mustḗrion)
Indonesian: ^{(please verify)} keajaiban (id)
Italian: ^{(please verify)} mistero (it) m, ^{(please verify)} giallo (it) m

References

http://www.marxists.org/archive/marx/works/1867-c1/ch15.htm#S9

Middle English

Etymology 1

From Anglo-Norman misterie.

Noun

mystery

Alternative form of mysterie (“mystery”)

Etymology 2

From Old French mistere.

Noun

mystery

Alternative form of mysterie (“duty”)

[1] ttp://www.marxists.org/archive/marx/works/1867-c1/ch15.htm#S9