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
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of obscenity
People throwing cigarette butts against the house, yelling obscenities, playing derogatory music.
—
Madeleine Wright,
CBS News,
8 June 2026
Ravishing and exhilarating, The Handmaiden is about both intimate love and crude obscenity, which Chan-wook expertly balances to complement each other well.
—
Kevin Jacobsen,
Entertainment Weekly,
6 June 2026
Politically, while there may have been the Ginsberg who was the heroic advocate for free expression in a 1956 California State Superior Court obscenity trial concerning Howl, there was also the Ginsberg who was a defender of NAMBLA in the 1980s (on first amendment grounds, but still).
—
Literary Hub,
3 June 2026
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
See All Example Sentences for obscenity
Madeleine Wright,
CBS News,
8 June 2026
Ravishing and exhilarating, The Handmaiden is about both intimate love and crude obscenity, which Chan-wook expertly balances to complement each other well.
—
Kevin Jacobsen,
Entertainment Weekly,
6 June 2026
Politically, while there may have been the Ginsberg who was the heroic advocate for free expression in a 1956 California State Superior Court obscenity trial concerning Howl, there was also the Ginsberg who was a defender of NAMBLA in the 1980s (on first amendment grounds, but still).
—
Literary Hub,
3 June 2026
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
See All Example Sentences for obscenity
Recent Examples of Synonyms for obscenity
Noun
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The once-vaunted values of public life are now reduced to the lower standards of private life—venality, vulgarity, rudeness, incontinence, and ignorance.
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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.
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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Why fill with swears a show that might otherwise have been appointment viewing for the whole family?
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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.
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 4 Jul. 2026.
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