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obfuscate

[ ob-fuh-skeyt, ob-fuhs-keyt ]
/ ˈɒb fəˌskeɪt, ɒbˈfʌs keɪt /
SEE SYNONYMS FOR obfuscate ON THESAURUS.COM

verb (used with object), ob·fus·cat·ed, ob·fus·cat·ing.

to confuse, bewilder, or stupefy.
to make obscure or unclear: to obfuscate a problem with extraneous information.
to darken.

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Origin of obfuscate

1525–35; <Late Latin obfuscātus (past participle of obfuscāre to darken), equivalent to Latin ob-ob- + fusc(us) dark + -ātus-ate1

OTHER WORDS FROM obfuscate

ob·fus·ca·tion, nounob·fus·ca·to·ry [ob-fuhs-kuh-tawr-ee, -tohr-ee], /ɒbˈfʌs kəˌtɔr i, -ˌtoʊr i/, adjectiveun·ob·fus·cat·ed, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020

Words related to obfuscate

baffle, complicate, perplex, bewilder, conceal, befuddle, puzzle, muddle, confound, rattle, fog, becloud, obscure, darken, cloud, fuddle

British Dictionary definitions for obfuscate

obfuscate
/ (ˈɒbfʌsˌkeɪt) /

verb (tr)

to obscure or darken
to perplex or bewilder

Derived forms of obfuscate

obfuscatory, adjective

Word Origin for obfuscate

C16: from Latin ob- (intensive) + fuscāre to blacken, from fuscus dark
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012