Both Uses of
enigma
in
Catch-22
- He was disappointed, but not inclined to believe Yossarian, for he had been given a sign, a secret, enigmatic vision that he still lacked the boldness to divulge.†
Chpt 25 *enigmatic = mysterious and seeming unexplainable
- To German intelligence, Major — de Coverley was a vexatious enigma; not one of the hundreds of American prisoners would ever supply any concrete information about the elderly white-haired officer with the gnarled and menacing brow and blazing, powerful eyes who seemed to spearhead every important advance so fearlessly and successfully.†
Chpt 13
Definitions:
-
(1)
(enigma) something mysterious that seems unexplainable
-
(2)
(meaning too rare to warrant focus) meaning too rare to warrant focus:
The word may also be seen in the proper noun, Enigma Machine. It refers to an encryption device used by Nazi Germany during the second world war. Britain eventually learned to unencrypt messages sent with the machine, but kept that ability a secret.