1
as in blunt
lacking sharpness of edge or point
obtuse scissors designed so that young users will not cut themselves
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in dumb
not having or showing an ability to absorb ideas readily
forgive me for being obtuse, but I wish you'd explain that to me again
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of obtuse
And suggesting that Dustin Johnson and Patrick Reed should be on a Ryder Cup team in 2025 is both willfully obtuse and indicative of a person looking back, not forward.
—
Hugh Kellenberger, New York Times, 2 Oct. 2025
Looking to boost Hispanic voter engagement, in the spring of the election year, Obama ignored Congress and took a constitutionally obtuse executive action shielding immigrants who came to the United States illegally as minors from deportation.
—Chris Stirewalt, The Hill, 19 Aug. 2025
Nevala-Lee’s previous biography was on Buckminster Fuller, architect, futurist, longtime professor at Southern Illinois University, but also an infamously obtuse, inscrutable mansplainer’s mansplainer — his lectures seemed to go on for days.
—Christopher Borrelli, Chicago Tribune, 13 Aug. 2025
Instead, the show morphed into a thudding retread of SATC with weaker, more diluted storytelling/joke-telling and an obtuse obsession with flaunting its characters’ seemingly infinite riches.
—Robyn Bahr, HollywoodReporter, 3 Sep. 2019
See All Example Sentences for obtuse
Hugh Kellenberger, New York Times, 2 Oct. 2025
Looking to boost Hispanic voter engagement, in the spring of the election year, Obama ignored Congress and took a constitutionally obtuse executive action shielding immigrants who came to the United States illegally as minors from deportation.
—Chris Stirewalt, The Hill, 19 Aug. 2025
Nevala-Lee’s previous biography was on Buckminster Fuller, architect, futurist, longtime professor at Southern Illinois University, but also an infamously obtuse, inscrutable mansplainer’s mansplainer — his lectures seemed to go on for days.
—Christopher Borrelli, Chicago Tribune, 13 Aug. 2025
Instead, the show morphed into a thudding retread of SATC with weaker, more diluted storytelling/joke-telling and an obtuse obsession with flaunting its characters’ seemingly infinite riches.
—Robyn Bahr, HollywoodReporter, 3 Sep. 2019
See All Example Sentences for obtuse
Recent Examples of Synonyms for obtuse
Adjective
-
Brentwood Police Department A second independent autopsy requested by the Ramirez family determined her cause of death was a homicide and cited multiple blunt-force injuries to her head and torso, as well as asphyxiation caused by police restraint.—
Carlos E. Castañeda,
CBS News,
7 May 2026
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Michael Rapaport is calling out New York leadership in blunt terms after a tense protest outside a Manhattan synagogue, demanding accountability from the state’s top office.—
Stephanie Giang-Paunon,
FOXNews.com,
6 May 2026
Adjective
-
These dumb little kids were freaking bored.—
Emma Seiwell,
New York Daily News,
8 May 2026
-
The series will now be hosted by British comedian Jack Whitehall and the network has lined up a phalanx of celebrities aiming not to be the dumbest in the country.—
Peter White,
Deadline,
7 May 2026
Adjective
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The results have been impressive enough from far away, but examined more closely as a blunted, external force, Big Brother has almost always been too literal in horror cinema.—
Alison Foreman,
IndieWire,
4 May 2026
-
Orientation matters; garlic is planted vertically, with the root (blunted) end of the clove facing down, and the sprout (pointy) end facing up.—
Samantha Johnson,
Martha Stewart,
3 Mar. 2026
Adjective
-
Vietnam, Iraq, Afghanistan and Iran — theyr’e not stupid.—
Sun Sentinel Editorial Board,
Sun Sentinel,
3 May 2026
-
That was celebrated by the lefties as liberation, or something stupid like that.—
Joe Kinsey OutKick,
FOXNews.com,
1 May 2026
Adjective
-
But so far, progress has been slow — if not nonexistent.—
Audrey Pachuta,
Chicago Tribune,
9 May 2026
-
Russia’s bigger and better-equipped army has been engaged in a slow, hard slog in Ukraine.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
8 May 2026
Adjective
-
These are products have a short, simple ingredient lists that are easy to understand for regular consumers and are free from additives.—
Priyanka Salve,
CNBC,
7 May 2026
-
Sometimes this involved simple in-person observations.—
E. Tammy Kim,
New Yorker,
7 May 2026
Adjective
-
The slain hikers were among 20 who set out to ascend the 1,355-meter (4,445-foot) volcano in defiance of safety restrictions and became stranded when Dukono erupted early Friday, spewing a thick ash column that rose about 10 kilometers (6 miles) into the air.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
9 May 2026
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The dead were among 20 hikers who set out to ascend the 4,445-foot volcano in defiance of safety restrictions and became stranded when Dukono erupted early Friday, spewing a thick ash column that rose about 6 miles into the air.—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
9 May 2026
Adjective
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Eating avocado or almond butter on toast offers several benefits, as both are nutrient-dense, with almond butter slightly healthier than avocado per serving.—
Angelica Bottaro,
Verywell Health,
28 Apr. 2026
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The most lasting albums were built on the tradition of musique concrète, leading to dense, mesmerizing collages.—
Joshua Minsoo Kim,
Pitchfork,
28 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Obtuse.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/obtuse. Accessed 11 May. 2026.
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