nebulous
Americanadjective
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hazy, vague, indistinct, or confused.
a nebulous recollection of the meeting; a nebulous distinction between pride and conceit.
-
cloudy or cloudlike.
-
of or resembling a nebula or nebulae in deep space; nebular.
adjective
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lacking definite form, shape, or content; vague or amorphous
nebulous reasons
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of, characteristic of, or resembling a nebula
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rare misty or hazy
Other Word Forms
- nebulously adverb
- nebulousness noun
- nonnebulous adjective
- nonnebulously adverb
- nonnebulousness noun
- quasi-nebulous adjective
- quasi-nebulously adverb
Etymology
Origin of nebulous
First recorded in 1375–1425; late Middle English, from Latin nebulōsus “full of mist, foggy, cloudy,” from nebul(a) “cloud, mist, vapor” ( nebula ) + -ōsus -ous
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
For many American families, saving for college is a daunting and nebulous task.
From MarketWatch • Apr. 1, 2026
Quite often, while these U-turns shake up markets, they remain nebulous in terms of actual deals.
From Barron's • Mar. 23, 2026
We play by a code of conduct, that nebulous thing we have reified as “international law.”
From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 8, 2025
The museum’s nebulous, careful positioning in many ways mirrors the politics that may have buried Kelly’s and Johnson’s involvement six decades ago.
From Los Angeles Times • Nov. 25, 2025
But it was nebulous, too much of an unknown.
From "Americanah" by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
