as in confusing
to make (something) unclear to the understanding
irrelevant matters that only serve to obfuscate the fundamental issue of guilt or innocence
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Recent Examples of obfuscating
When The Star requested records related to ATO being placed on probation last year, the outcome letter KU provided was heavily redacted, completely obfuscating the narrative of the hazing allegations that university investigators found to be credible.
—
Matthew Kelly
april 6, Kansas City Star, 6 Apr. 2026
The renderings, which showed an imposing new East Wing roughly a city block long, would be longer than the West Wing and almost completely obfuscating the view of the Treasury Building from the White House's South Lawn.
—Swapna Venugopal Ramaswamy, USA Today, 26 Feb. 2026
Lawyers for the group contend that the city is willfully obfuscating to cover up its inadequate efforts to live up to its settlement.
—Los Angeles Times, 16 Jan. 2026
The state says the foundation did this because Aerial Recovery, the nonprofit, had been obfuscating its name.
—Evan Mealins, Nashville Tennessean, 24 Oct. 2025
Some data types can be encrypted randomly, obfuscating enough of the data to stymie hackers—such as using only the last four digits of your credit to confirm your purchase identity.
—Srinivas Shekar, Forbes.com, 8 Sep. 2025
Matthew Kelly
april 6, Kansas City Star, 6 Apr. 2026
The renderings, which showed an imposing new East Wing roughly a city block long, would be longer than the West Wing and almost completely obfuscating the view of the Treasury Building from the White House's South Lawn.
—Swapna Venugopal Ramaswamy, USA Today, 26 Feb. 2026
Lawyers for the group contend that the city is willfully obfuscating to cover up its inadequate efforts to live up to its settlement.
—Los Angeles Times, 16 Jan. 2026
The state says the foundation did this because Aerial Recovery, the nonprofit, had been obfuscating its name.
—Evan Mealins, Nashville Tennessean, 24 Oct. 2025
Some data types can be encrypted randomly, obfuscating enough of the data to stymie hackers—such as using only the last four digits of your credit to confirm your purchase identity.
—Srinivas Shekar, Forbes.com, 8 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for obfuscating
Verb
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The Elegoo Jupiter 2 3D printer shows flashes of excellence with its massive build volume and striking print quality, but uneven automation, confusing UI menus, and a still-maturing workflow limit its appeal.—
Michael Lydick,
PC Magazine,
2 May 2026
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Amanda Peet has had people confusing her for Lake Bell at restaurants, airports, red carpets and everywhere in between.—
Laura Lane,
PEOPLE,
1 May 2026
Verb
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Some brighten as the sky goes dark; others fade, their edges blurring.—
Carly Tagen-Dye,
PEOPLE,
12 May 2026
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Trump is no stranger to blurring the lines of religion and politics.—
Lauren Costantino,
Miami Herald,
12 May 2026
Verb
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Assets worth at least $1 million — which includes the vast majority of real estate in San Francisco — are also grouped together, further muddying the picture.—
Alyce McFadden,
San Francisco Chronicle,
2 Apr. 2026
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Also muddying the outlook for an end to the crisis is uncertainty about what the United States is trying to achieve.—
Paul Wiseman,
Los Angeles Times,
13 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Obfuscating.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/obfuscating. Accessed 14 May. 2026.
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