unobtrusive

[uhn-uhb-troo-siv]

adjective

1. not obtrusive; inconspicuous, unassertive, or reticent.

unobtrusive

/ ˌʌnəbˈtruːsɪv /

adjective

1. not noticeable or conspicuous

Other Word Forms

• unobtrusively adverb
• unobtrusiveness noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of unobtrusive¹

First recorded in 1735–45; un- ¹ + obtrusive

Example Sentences

Watch her three short films — “Medusa,” “Hannahs” and “If Found,” all available on YouTube — and you’ll glimpse the unobtrusive, observant style she brings to “Good One,” which captures the still-festering male rivalry between middle-aged friends.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

Nazi concentration-camp guards used to enjoy unobtrusive second acts by embedding themselves into American middle-class communities.

Read more on Salon

On the sixth day, we realised no safe place remained in Kigali so we joined the exodus - trying to be as unobtrusive as possible at the roadblocks manned by machete-wielding militia men.

Read more on BBC

Kwak, poised and graceful, lent a surprising calm to the show, unobtrusive when needed and expressive when called for.

Read more on Seattle Times

Nursing, engineering and neuropsychology researchers at Florida Atlantic University are testing and evaluating a readily and rapidly available, unobtrusive in-vehicle sensing system they have developed.

Read more on Science Daily

Related Words

• inconspicuous 
• low-key 
• restrained 
• self-effacing 
• subdued 
• unassuming 
• unpretentious