nebulous

adjective neb·u·lous \ ˈne-byə-ləs \

Updated on: 14 May 2018

Definition of nebulous

1 : of, relating to, or resembling a nebula : nebular

2 : indistinct, vague

… this nebulous thing called jazz.
—Josef Woodard

… the nebulous region between mere suspicion and probable cause
—W. R. LaFave & J. H. Israel

The plan is too nebulous.

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nebulously

adverb

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nebulousness

noun

See nebulous defined for English-language learners

See nebulous defined for kids

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Examples of nebulous in a Sentence

These philosophical concepts can be nebulous.
made nebulous references to some major changes the future may hold

Recent Examples of nebulous from the Web

Survival horror is a nebulous term, and one that’s more popularly applied to video games—the Resident Evil franchise is one classic of the genre.

— asher elbein, The Atlantic, "The Terror Is More Than a Chilling Monster Show," 1 May 2018
Beyond one another, nearly every candidate is wrestling a more nebulous foe: Building a name.

— matt stout, BostonGlobe.com, "Buoyed by anti-Trump wave, 13 Democrats chase open Third District seat," 27 Apr. 2018
Despite years of investment from some of the music industry’s most prominent leaders, the future of virtual reality for music remains surprisingly nebulous.

— cherie hu, Billboard, "TheWaveVR Raises $6 Million Series A Round to Bring Social, Interactive VR Music Experiences to the Masses," 23 Apr. 2018
But with the Expansion, Callisto is the sum total of the reporting process, and that makes the next steps much more nebulous.

— lux alptraum, The Verge, "Can Callisto transform how Silicon Valley deals with sexual harassment?," 17 Apr. 2018
The revolutionary guerrilla Kim Il Sung seized power in 1948 and built the state ideology around the nebulous concept of juche, which is loosely defined as ultranationalist self-reliance.

— Time, "What Kim Jong Un Really Wants From President Trump," 29 Mar. 2018
The plan, which at this point seems to be completely nebulous, is for five starters plus one.

— jeff wilson, star-telegram, "Amid six-man hubbub, Rangers still determining how rotation will work | Fort Worth Star-Telegram," 5 Mar. 2018
In the comics, Wakanda’s location was always kind of nebulous.

— david frese, kansascity, "Black Panther: 10 things to know about Marvel superhero | The Kansas City Star," 13 Feb. 2018
So often, Survivor strategy just comes down to a nebulous feeling.

— stephen fishbach, PEOPLE.com, "Stephen Fishbach's Survivor Blog: When Two People Tell You Opposite Stories, Who Do You Trust?," 25 Apr. 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'nebulous.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Did You Know?

Nebulous comes from the Latin word nebulosus, meaning "misty," which in turn comes from nebula, meaning "mist," "fog," or "cloud." In the 18th century, English speakers borrowed "nebula" and gave it a somewhat more specific meaning than the Latin version. In English, "nebula" refers to a cloud of gas or dust in deep space, or in less technical contexts, simply to a galaxy. "Nebulous" itself, when it doesn't have interstellar implications, usually means "cloudy" or "foggy" in a figurative sense. One's memory of a long-past event, for example, will often be nebulous; a teenager might give a nebulous recounting of an evening's events upon coming home; or a politician might make a campaign promise but give only a nebulous description of how he or she would fulfill it.