obscure

adjective

Save Word

ob·scure | \ äb-ˈskyu̇r

, əb- \

Definition of obscure

(Entry 1 of 3)

1a : dark, dim the obscure dusk of the shuttered room

b : shrouded in or hidden by darkness standing obscure in the deepest shade

c : not clearly seen or easily distinguished : faint obscure markings

2 : not readily understood or clearly expressed also : mysterious a slough of pretentious and obscure jargon — Philip Howard

3 : relatively unknown: such as

a : remote, secluded an obscure village

b : not prominent or famous an obscure poet

4 : constituting the unstressed vowel \ə\ or having unstressed \ə\ as its value

obscure

verb

ob·scure | \ äb-ˈskyu̇r

, əb- \

obscured; obscuring

Definition of obscure (Entry 2 of 3)

transitive verb

1 : to make dark, dim, or indistinct The soot on the lampshade obscured the light.

2 : to conceal or hide by or as if by covering … snow on glaciers can obscure deep crevasses.— Tom Simon

3 : to reduce (a vowel) to the value \ə\

obscure

noun

ob·scure | \ äb-ˈskyu̇r

, əb- \

Definition of obscure (Entry 3 of 3)

: obscurity

Other Words from obscure Synonyms & Antonyms Choose the Right Synonym More Example Sentences Learn More About obscure

Keep scrolling for more

Other Words from obscure

Adjective

obscurely adverb

obscureness noun

Verb

obscuration \ ˌäb-skyu̇-ˈrā-shən

\ noun

Choose the Right Synonym for obscure

Adjective

obscure, dark, vague, enigmatic, cryptic, ambiguous, equivocal mean not clearly understandable. obscure implies a hiding or veiling of meaning through some inadequacy of expression or withholding of full knowledge. obscure poems dark implies an imperfect or clouded revelation often with ominous or sinister suggestion. muttered dark hints of revenge vague implies a lack of clear formulation due to inadequate conception or consideration. a vague sense of obligation enigmatic stresses a puzzling, mystifying quality. enigmatic occult writings cryptic implies a purposely concealed meaning. cryptic hints of hidden treasure ambiguous applies to language capable of more than one interpretation. an ambiguous directive equivocal applies to language left open to differing interpretations with the intention of deceiving or evading. moral precepts with equivocal phrasing

Examples of obscure in a Sentence

Adjective Many people shared an obscure sense of gratification that [Dylan] Thomas had died young, as a poet should. — Adam Kirsch, New Yorker, 5 July 2004 But by 1830 the Boston Mission Board was desperate enough that it targeted an obscure sect of Oriental Christians, the Nestorians in faraway Iran, as a possibility for conversion. — Robert D. Kaplan, The Arabists, 1993 I knew they were special from their jeans and T-shirts, their knowing, ironic looks when obscure works of literature were referred to. — Julia Alvarez, How the Garcia Girls Lost Their Accents, 1991 Now at last Bacon could refer when he chose to his father's high position and his father's service—and no man could say it was done for self-aggrandizement, as a son who is obscure bespeaks the glory of past forebears. — Catherine Drinker Bowen, Francis Bacon, 1963 The movie is full of obscure references that only pop culture enthusiasts will understand. The origins of the language are obscure. Verb Throughout this book, the ground of fact becomes obscured entirely by a deep layer of speculative quicksand. — Helen Vendler, New Republic, 10 June 2002 But evening comes or even noon and some combination of nervous tensions obscures my memories of what whiskey costs me in the way of physical and intellectual well-being. — John Cheever, New Yorker, 13 Aug. 1990 … [Mr. Schuller's] … "Early Jazz" brought a sometimes Olympian precision to writing about an art that has often languished in the whale's belly of sociology, obscured by pretension and blubbery thinking. — Stanley Crouch, New York Times Book Review, 2 Apr. 1989 It was eight o'clock when we landed; we walked for a short time on the shore enjoying the transitory light, and then retired to the inn and contemplated the lovely scene of waters, woods, and mountains, obscured in darkness, yet still displaying their black outlines. — Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley, Frankenstein, 1818 The true history has been obscured by legends about what happened. They accused the company of trying to obscure the fact that the product poses a health risk. Noun … who shall … through the palpable obscure find out his uncouth way … ? — John Milton, Paradise Lost, 1667

Recent Examples on the Web: Adjective Today, there is no suburb or subculture too obscure to be invaded by cameras, and no shortage of eyeballs to tune in and find out what happens when the people there stop being polite and start getting real. — James Montgomery, Rolling Stone, 29 May 2021 So far as the extant record shows, Aswell’s reasons were obscure. — Colin Asher, The New Republic, 19 Apr. 2021 Books like The Bomber Mafia that discuss the varieties of air war and the various merits of different approaches obscure this fact under irrelevant technological distraction. — Colin Dickey, The New Republic, 4 June 2021 Musk frequently triggers large moves in cryptocurrency prices, often via obscure remarks on social media. — Hanna Ziady, CNN, 4 June 2021 Lawmakers who hadn’t known much about the obscure Chapter 313 program were paying attention to the debate on the House floor, Martinez said. — Mike Morris, San Antonio Express-News, 2 June 2021 During his tenure leading the generally obscure General Land Office, Bush faced criticism over his handling of the major renovation of the Alamo historic site and recovery efforts after Hurricane Harvey. — Allie Morris, Dallas News, 2 June 2021 Shrimp, boquerones and obscure fish like seabream dominated the daily menu, appearing on almost every dish aside from the two pizzas. — Andi Berlin, The Arizona Republic, 30 May 2021 The reason is an obscure US regulation, called the Kyl-Bingaman Amendment, that used to forbid American companies from providing higher-resolution satellite images of the region, due to security concerns expressed by Israel. — Luiz Romero, Wired, 28 May 2021 Recent Examples on the Web: Verb Moreover, titles that obscure who does what can make life complicated for employees, colleagues and customers. — The Economist, 14 Apr. 2021 These sort of sales — which are often conducted through shell companies that can obscure a buyer’s identity — have also drawn the eye of federal regulators, who worry the murky transactions are ripe for money laundering. — BostonGlobe.com, 30 Mar. 2021 As a result, they are tempted to conduct such analysis with a thumb on the scale, deeming some effects too uncertain to quantify or express in monetary terms, or identifying policy alternatives that obscure important choices. — Randall Lutter, National Review, 15 Mar. 2021 Don’t drive through puddles that may obscure a hole. — Christopher Arnott, courant.com, 24 Feb. 2021 Cfius is concerned with Chinese early-stage investments coming through intermediaries that obscure the real source of capital, said people with knowledge of the matter. — Heather Somerville, WSJ, 31 Jan. 2021 Calculating the social cost of carbon is complicated, and it’s based on dozens of fiddly knobs that sometimes obscure the value judgments baked into it. — Paul Voosen, Science | AAAS, 22 Jan. 2021 These saws will handle everything from trimming mid-sized branches that might obscure the view from your deer stand to cutting larger logs for firewood. — The Editors, Field & Stream, 14 Aug. 2019 This makes sense due to the likelihood of dust being tossed up when the autonomous helicopter gets closer to the Mars surface and would obscure or make the images unusable or unreliable. — Lance Eliot, Forbes, 5 June 2021

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