shadowy

adjective

shad·​owy ˈsha-dō-ē 

-də-wē

1

a

: of the nature of or resembling a shadow

b

: faintly perceptible : indistinct

2

: being in or obscured by shadow

deep shadowy interiors

3

a

: shady sense 1

b

: shady sense 3

shadowily

ˈsha-də-wə-lē 

adverb

shadowiness

ˈsha-də-wē-nəs 

noun

Synonyms

• blear
• bleary
• blurry
• dim
• faint
• foggy
• fuzzy
• gauzy
• hazy
• indefinite
• indistinct
• indistinguishable
• misty
• murky
• nebulous
• obscure
• opaque
• pale
• unclear
• undefined
• undetermined
• vague

Examples of shadowy in a Sentence

She was pursued by a shadowy figure.

He had only a shadowy idea of what they wanted him to do.

Recent Examples on the Web

The shadowy club hit started out wrapped up in some mystery, partially because prior to the song’s success, FloyyMenor was a local, hard-to-pin-down Chilean artist whose face and identity had been largely hidden from the internet. —Julyssa Lopez, Rolling Stone, 19 Sep. 2024

In the past two decades, Mossad's primary focus has been Iran – in particular, its shadowy nuclear and missile programmes. —Harriet Marsden, The Week Uk, theweek, 18 Sep. 2024

Watts has made a deal for a sequel of the slick thriller about two competitive shadowy guys who quietly fix messes that powerful people get into. —Mike Fleming Jr, Deadline, 18 Sep. 2024

At times, Musk is a shadowy figure in the background, such as one account where an investor and friend of Musk named Antonio Gracias meets by phone with the Twitter CFO VictoryShares US 500 Enhanced Volatility Wtd ETF 0.0% and other staffers. —John Brandon, Forbes, 17 Sep. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Kids Definition

shadowy

adjective

shad·​owy ˈshad-ə-wē 

1

a

: not realistic

shadowy dreams of glory

b

: dim as a shadow

the shadowy area between good and bad

2

: full of shade

a shadowy lane