1
as in vulgarity
the quality or state of being obscene
the song couldn't be performed on the air due to the obscenity of the lyrics
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in curse
a disrespectful or indecent word or expression
uttered a loud obscenity when he dropped the hammer on his toe
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of obscenity
The French had obscenity laws, too, but they were designed to be hard to enforce, and, in any case, the French didn’t care much about English-language pornography in the nineteen-twenties, since it was purchased mostly by tourists.
—
Louis Menand,
New Yorker,
1 June 2026
While the council remained inside to finish the meeting, including approving a local emergency declaration, police were outside where a small mob gathered, yelling obscenities at the officers.
—
Victoria Le,
Oc Register,
27 May 2026
Officers, often summoned by principals or teacers, escalated some situations by shouting obscenities or insults.
—
Clare Amari,
New York Times,
27 May 2026
Cheers immediately broke out across the arena in response to the obscenity.
—
Alejandro Avila Outkick,
FOXNews.com,
11 May 2026
See All Example Sentences for obscenity
Louis Menand,
New Yorker,
1 June 2026
While the council remained inside to finish the meeting, including approving a local emergency declaration, police were outside where a small mob gathered, yelling obscenities at the officers.
—
Victoria Le,
Oc Register,
27 May 2026
Officers, often summoned by principals or teacers, escalated some situations by shouting obscenities or insults.
—
Clare Amari,
New York Times,
27 May 2026
Cheers immediately broke out across the arena in response to the obscenity.
—
Alejandro Avila Outkick,
FOXNews.com,
11 May 2026
See All Example Sentences for obscenity
Recent Examples of Synonyms for obscenity
Noun
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Benoit delights in language as much as her heroine, weaving Regency-era slang throughout and appending a chapter-by-chapter glossary of vulgarities.
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On Monday night, that park seemed so far away as Knicks fans rained vulgarities down on Wembanyama and his teammates inside Madison Square Garden.
Noun
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Morgan and her Judgment Day cronies tried to bribe Danhausen to put curses on their opponents.
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The dust-ups might have driven the Honeywells away from their island paradise, more casualties of the lottery curse.
Noun
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All your Dad has to do is fill it and drink—the microfilter membrane will do the rest by removing chlorine odors, dirt, bacteria, and any other grossness floating around in there.
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There are no great surprises from here on out, though the sheer, lusty grossness of the fallout is occasionally startling.
Noun
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The event finds more than 20,000 people participating in an annual bar crawl throughout the city while dressed in their best holiday attire, tackiest Santa Claus costumes, and ugliest Christmas swears.
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Kennedy could be heard hurling swears at the Swedish team.
Noun
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The other funnymen of the time—Milton Berle with his lewd suggestiveness, Jackie Gleason with his baleful roar—did the same shtick over and over.
Noun
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Skubal was last seen yelling profanities at magic wander Mike Vasil but would nevertheless fit in well in the Sox clubhouse and give Sox fans reason to believe this team can do something in October.
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Now, if that fan crosses the line with death threats and extreme profanity, by all means, kick them out of the ballpark.
Noun
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There’s some rudeness, aggressive conversations, and crudeness, but nothing too over the top.
Noun
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Eight groups challenged the department’s definition in court, representing nurse practitioners, therapists, speech language pathologists and more.
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Keep language simple, confirm times, and leave extra room between commitments.
Cite this Entry
“Obscenity.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/obscenity. Accessed 1 Jul. 2026.
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