obscure

1 having an often intentionally veiled or uncertain meaning a fantasy writer who likes to put lots of obscure references and images in her tales of wizards and warlocks Synonyms ambiguous, arcane, cryptic, dark, deep, Delphic, double-edged, elliptical (or elliptic), enigmatic (also enigmatical), equivocal, fuliginous, inscrutable, murky, mysterious, mystic, nebulous, occult, opaque Related Words abstruse, esoteric, recondite; cloaked, concealed, disguised, masked, shrouded; beclouded, bedimmed, befogged, clouded, cloudy, dim, faint, foggy, fuzzy, hazy, indistinct, indistinguishable, misty, muddy, obfuscatory, obnubilated, obscurant (or obscurantic), shaded, shadowlike, shadowy, sphinxlike; indefinite, inexact, inexplicit, noncommittal, questionable, unclear, uncertain, undefined, undetermined, vague; impenetrable, incomprehensible, indecipherable, inexplicable; eerie (also eery), uncanny, weird; impalpable, inappreciable, intangible, invisible; unanswerable, unknowable; baffling, bewildering, confounding, confusing, mystifying, perplexing, puzzling, unfathomable; circuitous, indirect, roundabout; complex, complicated, difficult, obtuse Near Antonyms comprehensible, fathomable, intelligible, knowable, legible, pellucid, understandable; bright, distinct, evident, self-evident, self-explanatory; certain, firm, strong, sure; defined, determined; direct, straightforward; definite, exact, explicit; appreciable, palpable, tangible, visible; blatant, patent, unmistakable Antonyms accessible, clear, nonambiguous, obvious, plain, unambiguous, unequivocal

2 not widely known he's an obscure artist now, but he's sure to be famous someday Synonyms nameless, no-name, noteless, uncelebrated, unfamous, unknown, unrecognized, unsung Related Words insignificant, minor, unimportant; undistinguished, unexceptional, unremarkable; unpopular; anonymous, faceless, unnoticeable, unrecognizable; unnewsworthy, unnoticed; forgotten, unremembered Near Antonyms fabled, fabulous, legendary; infamous; distinguished, eminent, exceptional, great, illustrious, notable, outstanding, prestigious, remarkable; estimable, honorable, reputable, respectable; important, influential, leading, major, newsworthy, noteworthy, significant; favorite, popular, preferred Antonyms celebrated, famed, famous, noted, notorious, prominent, renowned, well-known

3 being without light or without much light hid in an obscure spot among the trees Synonyms black, caliginous, darkened, darkish, darkling, darksome, dim, dimmed, dusk, dusky, gloomy, lightless, murky, dark, obscured, pitch-black, pitch-dark, pitchy, rayless, somber (or sombre), stygian, tenebrific, tenebrous, unlitRelated Words crepuscular, twilit; moonless, starless, sunless; cloudy, dull, dulled, lackluster; shadowlike, shadowy, shady; gray (also grey), leaden, pale; beclouded, befogged, clouded, foggy, fuliginous, misty, smoggy, soupyNear Antonyms ablaze, agleam, aglitter, alight, beaming, beamy, effulgent, glaring, glowing, incandescent, lambent, radiant, relucent, resplendent, shining, sparkling; ultrabright; glossy, lustrous, shiny; floodlit (also floodlighted), highlighted, spotlighted (or spotlit); moonlit, moony, starlit, sunlitAntonyms bright, brightened, brilliant, illuminated, illumined, light, lit (or lighted), lightsome, lucent, lucid, luminous

4 not seen or understood clearly a distinction so obscure that only the experts can really see it Synonyms blear, bleary, blurry, dim, foggy, fuzzy, gauzy, hazy, indefinite, indistinct, indistinguishable, misty, murky, nebulous, faint, opaque, pale, shadowy, unclear, undefined, undetermined, vagueRelated Words dark, dusky, gloomy; impalpable, inappreciable, intangible, invisible; hieroglyphic (also hieroglyphical), incomprehensible, indecipherable, indiscernible, inexplicable, mysterious, obfuscatory, puzzlingNear Antonyms bright, distinct, evident, obvious, plain; certain, firm, strong, sureAntonyms clear, definite, pellucid