obtuse

adjective

ob·​tuse äb-ˈtüs 

əb-,

-ˈtyüs

obtuser; obtusest

1

a

: slow to understand what is obvious or simple : dense sense 2a

He is too obtuse to take a hint.

b

: difficult to comprehend : not clear or precise in thought or expression

obtuse legalese

It is also, unfortunately, ill-written, and at times obtuse and often trivial.

—Shirley Hazzard

2

a

: not pointed or acute : blunt

an obtuse contour

b(1)

of an angle : exceeding 90 degrees but less than 180 degrees

(2)

: having an obtuse angle

an obtuse triangle

see triangle illustration

c

of a leaf : rounded at the free end

obtusely adverb

obtuseness noun

Did you know?

There’s a lot to understand about obtuse, so we’ll get straight to the point. Obtuse comes from a Latin word, obtusus, meaning “dull” or “blunt.” It can describe a geometric angle that is not acute (in other words one that exceeds 90 degrees but is less than 180 degrees), a leaf that is rounded at its free end, or a person who isn’t thinking clearly or who otherwise refuses to see something apparent to others—if someone asks you if you’re being obtuse about something, they are not paying you a compliment. Another common sense (no pun intended) of obtuse related to apprehension is “hard to comprehend,” often applied to speech or writing that isn’t clearly expressed or thought out. This sense may have developed due to the influence of two similar-sounding words: abstruse, a formal word that also means “hard to comprehend,” and obscure, a word that can mean, among other things, “not readily understood or clearly expressed.”

Synonyms of obtuse

• blunt
• blunted

Choose the Right Synonym for obtuse

dull, blunt, obtuse mean not sharp, keen, or acute.

dull suggests a lack or loss of keenness, zest, or pungency.

a dull pain

a dull mind

blunt suggests an inherent lack of sharpness or quickness of feeling or perception.

a person of blunt sensibility

obtuse implies such bluntness as makes one insensitive in perception or imagination.

too obtuse to take the hint

Examples of obtuse in a Sentence

Murdoch's art, like all good art, is highly structured and controlled—a house neat and clean enough to satisfy the most morally obtuse of her upper-class British characters. —Martha C. Nussbaum, New Republic, 31 Dec. 2001 & 7 Jan. 2002

Only the most obtuse missed the main message: humans risked so distorting the natural order that they were sentencing themselves to be destroyed by frost or furnace. —Joseph A. Amato, Dust, 2000

In fact, he was too obtuse even to realize that his assignment to Tejas was a demotion … —James A. Michener, Texas, 1985

… either he, and the other people in his shop, and two people I subsequently ask are incapable of giving directions, or I am too rattled and obtuse to follow them, but I cannot find the police station. —Renata Adler, Pitch Dark, 1983

He is too obtuse to take a hint.

obtuse scissors designed so that young users will not cut themselves

Recent Examples on the Web

Chaikesh learned to conceptualize and think of AI not as a black box (as in, an obtuse system where users can’t follow its internal logic) but as a discipline grounded in clarity and fundamentals. —Matthew Kayser, USA Today, 4 Nov. 2025

And suggesting that Dustin Johnson and Patrick Reed should be on a Ryder Cup team in 2025 is both willfully obtuse and indicative of a person looking back, not forward. —Hugh Kellenberger, New York Times, 2 Oct. 2025

Looking to boost Hispanic voter engagement, in the spring of the election year, Obama ignored Congress and took a constitutionally obtuse executive action shielding immigrants who came to the United States illegally as minors from deportation. —Chris Stirewalt, The Hill, 19 Aug. 2025

Nevala-Lee’s previous biography was on Buckminster Fuller, architect, futurist, longtime professor at Southern Illinois University, but also an infamously obtuse, inscrutable mansplainer’s mansplainer — his lectures seemed to go on for days. —Christopher Borrelli, Chicago Tribune, 13 Aug. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Middle English, from Latin obtusus blunt, dull, from past participle of obtundere to beat against, blunt, from ob- against + tundere to beat — more at ob-, contusion

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 2a

Rhymes for obtuse

• abstruse
• abuse
• adduce
• atreus
• caboose
• cayuse
• conduce
• deduce
• diffuse
• disuse
• excuse
• footloose

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Kids Definition

obtuse

adjective

ob·​tuse äb-ˈt(y)üs 

obtuser; obtusest

1

: not pointed or sharp : blunt

2

a

: being between 90° and 180°

an obtuse angle

b

: having an obtuse angle

an obtuse triangle

3

: not quick or keen of understanding or feeling

obtuseness noun

Medical Definition

obtuse

adjective

ob·​tuse äb-ˈt(y)üs, əb- 

obtuser; obtusest

1

: lacking sharpness or quickness of sensibility or intellect

2

: not pointed or acute

obtuse pain