low-resolution

American  

[loh-rez-uh-loo-shuhn] / ˈloʊˌrɛz əˈlu ʃən /

adjective

Computers.

1. of or relating to CRTs, printers, or other visual output devices that produce images that are not sharply defined (high-resolution ).

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Compare meaning

How does low-resolution compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:

• high-resolution vs. low-resolution

Explanation

The adjective low-resolution describes a blurry or pixelated image, or the technology used to produce it. Your low-resolution printer is not the tool you need to print out a poster-sized photo of your cat. High-resolution digital cameras can produce a sharply defined, clear image, even when you zoom in on it to make a small detail much larger. By contrast, a low-resolution camera can't achieve that much detail without losing those sharp edges. A low-resolution (or "low-res") photograph quickly becomes blurred and imprecise. This word arose from computer lingo, though the "effect of an optical instrument" meaning of resolution dates from the 19th century.

Example Sentences

Since the mundane is where most of us live, futurists have failed to deliver even a low-resolution picture of the world in 10 or 50 years.

From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 30, 2025

A clock was positioned on a desk, and it looked just like Anderson’s Comet, but the low-resolution picture was so blurry that any engraving it may have had was impossible to discern.

From Los Angeles Times • Aug. 27, 2025

“Incident” is certainly less polished than its fellow nominees, forgoing interviews or resounding scores in favor of low-resolution security camera and body-cam footage to recount the police shooting of Harith “Snoop” Augustus.

From Salon • Feb. 28, 2025

The album cover is a plain green square, with the word "brat" printed in a deliberately low-resolution Arial font.

From BBC • Feb. 3, 2025

Except for the inline drawings on page 229, the maps and photos are low-resolution "thumbnails".

From A Journey from Prince of Wales's Fort in Hudson's Bay to the Northern Ocean in the Years 1769, 1770, 1771, 1772 New Edition with Introduction, Notes, and Illustrations by Tyrrell, J. B.