鵺ぬえ的てき

Meanings

mysterious; enigmatic; sphinx-like; noncommittal

Describes a person, statement, or attitude that is deliberately vague, hard to read, or evasive, like the mythical nue whose true nature is unclear. Often used for someone who won't give a straight answer.

彼かれの返へん事じはいつも鵺ぬえ的てきで、本ほん当とうの気き持もちがわからない。
His replies are always enigmatic, so I can't tell what he really thinks.
首しゅ相しょうの鵺ぬえ的てきな発はつ言げんに、記き者しゃたちは困こん惑わくした。
The reporters were baffled by the prime minister's sphinx-like remarks.

Kanji

鵺fabulous night bird, chimera
的bull's eye, mark, target
鵼

Related words

曖あい昧まい
曖昧 means 'vague' or 'ambiguous' in a general sense, while 鵺的 specifically implies a mysterious, hard-to-pin-down quality, often with a nuance of evasiveness or deliberate obscurity.
不ふ可か解かい
不可解 means 'incomprehensible' or 'unfathomable,' focusing on the inability to understand, whereas 鵺的 suggests something that is puzzling because its true nature is hidden or unclear.

Built from

鵺ぬえ+的てき

Written forms

鵺ぬえ的てき
Standard kanji spelling; the character 鵺 refers to the mythical nue chimera, giving the word its mysterious, unidentifiable nuance.
ヌエ的てき
Katakana spelling sometimes used for emphasis or in casual writing.
鵼ぬえ的てき
rarely-used kanji form
Rarely used kanji form; 鵼 is a variant of 鵺.

Etymology

From 鵺 (nue, a mythical Japanese chimera said to be difficult to identify) + 的 (-teki, '-like'). The word evokes the nue's elusive, unidentifiable nature.