obscure

[uhb-skyoor]

adjective

obscurer, obscurest 

1. (of meaning) not clear or plain; ambiguous, vague, or uncertain.

   an obscure sentence in the contract.

   Synonyms: dubious, doubtful
   Antonyms: certain

2. not clear to the understanding; hard to perceive.

   obscure motivations.

3. (of language, style, a speaker, etc.) not expressing the meaning clearly or plainly.

4. indistinct to the sight or any other sense; not readily seen, heard, etc.; faint.

   Synonyms: veiled
   Antonyms: clear, clear

5. inconspicuous or unnoticeable.

   the obscure beginnings of a great movement.

6. of little or no prominence, note, fame, or distinction.

   an obscure French artist.

   Synonyms: unknown, undistinguished
   Antonyms: conspicuous, noted

7. far from public notice, worldly affairs, or important activities; remote; retired.

   an obscure little town.

   Synonyms: inconspicuous, secluded

8. lacking in light or illumination; dark; dim; murky.

   an obscure back room.

   Synonyms: somber, shadowy, dusky
   Antonyms: bright

9. enveloped in, concealed by, or frequenting darkness.

10. not bright or lustrous; dull or darkish, as color or appearance.

11. (of a vowel) having the reduced or neutral sound usually represented by the schwa (ə).

verb (used with object)

obscured, obscuring 

1. to conceal or conceal by confusing (the meaning of a statement, poem, etc.).

2. to make dark, dim, indistinct, etc.

3. to reduce or neutralize (a vowel) to the sound usually represented by a schwa (ə).

noun

1. obscurity.

obscure

/ ˌɒbskjʊˈreɪʃən, əbˈskjʊə /

adjective

1. unclear or abstruse

2. indistinct, vague, or indefinite

3. inconspicuous or unimportant

4. hidden, secret, or remote

5. (of a vowel) reduced to or transformed into a neutral vowel ( ə )

6. gloomy, dark, clouded, or dim

verb

1. to make unclear, vague, or hidden

2. to cover or cloud over

3. phonetics to pronounce (a vowel) with articulation that causes it to become a neutral sound represented by ( ə )

noun

1. a rare word for obscurity

Other Word Forms

• obscuration noun
• obscureness noun
• obscurely adverb
• obscuredly adverb
• subobscure adjective
• subobscureness noun
• unobscure adjective
• unobscureness noun
• unobscured adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of obscure¹

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English, from Old French oscur, obscur, from Latin obscūrus “dark”

Word History and Origins

Origin of obscure¹

C14: via Old French from Latin obscūrus dark

Synonym Study

See mysterious. See dark.

Example Sentences

They’re trading tips on obscure cryptocurrencies from the decks of aircraft carriers.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

But while VPNs do all of that, they don’t totally obscure your online footprint, and they don’t make you invincible.

Read more on Salon

Some researchers favored the star-rich, dust-heavy galaxy idea, while others argued that the little red dots were actually active galactic nuclei obscured by large amounts of dust.

Read more on Science Daily

The shadow fleet is largely made-up of aged tankers, many with obscure ownership or insurance.

Read more on BBC

His meticulous survey takes in dozens of sources, from the obscure to the well-known: pamphlets to legal codes, sermons to atlases, maps, travel narratives, even journals kept by ships’ captains.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Related Words

• belie 
• blind 
• block out 
• blur 
• camouflage 
• cloud 
• confuse 
• cover 
• darken 
• dim 
• disguise 
• eclipse 
• mask 
• misrepresent 
• muddy 
• overshadow 
• shroud 
• veil