opacity

opac·i·ty

noun \ō-ˈpa-sə-tē\

: the quality of a material that does not allow light to pass through it : the quality of being opaque

: the quality of being difficult to understand or explain

plural opac·i·ties

Full Definition of OPACITY

1

a :  obscurity of sense :  unintelligibleness

b :  the quality or state of being mentally obtuse :  dullness

2

:  the quality or state of a body that makes it impervious to the rays of light; broadly :  the relative capacity of matter to obstruct the transmission of radiant energy

3

:  an opaque spot in a normally transparent structure (as the lens of the eye)

Examples of OPACITY

1. the opacity of the glass
2. Critics have noted the opacity of her writing style.

Origin of OPACITY

Middle French opacité shadiness, from Latin opacitat-, opacitas, from opacus shaded, dark

First Known Use: 1560

Related to OPACITY

Synonyms

ambiguity, ambiguousness, darkness, equivocalness, equivocation, inscrutability, inscrutableness, murkiness, mysteriousness, nebulosity, nebulousness, obliqueness, obliquity, obscurity, opaqueness

Antonyms

clarity, clearness, obviousness, plainness

Related Words

mystery, reconditeness; cloudiness, dimness, faintness, fogginess, fuzziness, haziness, indefiniteness, indistinctness, mistiness, shade, shadow, uncertainty, vagueness; impenetrability, incomprehensibility, incomprehensibleness; circuitousness, circuity, indirectness; deepness, depth, profoundness; abstruseness, abstrusity, complexity, complication, difficulty, obtuseness

Near Antonyms

comprehensibility, intelligibility, legibility; brightness, distinctness, self-evidence; certainty, surety; definiteness, exactness, explicitness, incision, incisiveness, lucidity, lucidness, perspicuity, perspicuousness; directness, forthrightness, openness, straightforwardness; palpability, tangibility, tangibleness, visibility; readability, readableness; obviousness

Rhymes with OPACITY

audacity, capacity, edacity, fugacity, loquacity, mendacity, predacity, pugnacity, rapacity, sagacity, sequacity, tenacity, veracity, vivacity, voracity

opac·i·ty

noun \ō-ˈpas-ət-ē\   (Medical Dictionary)

plural opac·i·ties

Medical Definition of OPACITY

1

: the quality or state of a body that makes it impervious to the rays of light; broadly : the relative capacity of matter to obstruct by absorption or reflection the transmission of radiant energy (as X-rays, infrared radiation, or sound)

2

: an opaque spot in a normally transparent structure (as the lens of the eye)