The first jigsaw puzzle was created around 1760 from John Spilsbury. He was a British engraver and mapmaker so he made a map on a sheet of wood that he then sawed around each individual country. Spilsbury used the product to aid in teaching geography. After catching on with the wider public, this remained the primary use of jigsaw puzzles until about 1820.
By the early 20th century, magazines and newspapers found that they could increase their daily subscriptions by publishing puzzle contents.
The word "puzzle" as a verb is used in the end of the 16th century and researchers think that the verb has came first, and that the noun has been its derivative. That first documented use comes from a book written in 1595, to describe a new type of game.
Don't forget to eat apples!