What is another word for obscure?

Synonyms for obscure
əbˈskyʊərob·scure

This thesaurus page includes all potential synonyms, words with the same meaning and similar terms for the word obscure.

Wiktionary2.0 / 2 votes

  1. obscureadjective

    Synonyms:
    mysterious, enigmatic, esoteric

    Antonyms:
    clear

  2. obscureadjective

    Dark, faint or indistinct.

    Synonyms:
    mysterious, enigmatic, esoteric

    Antonyms:
    clear

  3. obscureadjective

    Hidden, out of sight or inconspicuous.

    Synonyms:
    mysterious, enigmatic, esoteric

    Antonyms:
    clear

  4. obscureadjective

    Difficult to understand.

    Synonyms:
    esoteric, enigmatic, mysterious

    Antonyms:
    clear

English Synonyms and Antonyms3.3 / 3 votes

  1. obscure

    That is obscure which the eye or the mind can not clearly discern or see through, whether because of its own want of transparency, its depth or intricacy, or because of mere defect of light. That which is complicated is likely to be obscure, but that may be obscure which is not at all complicated and scarcely complex, as a muddy pool. In that which is abstruse (Latin abs, from, and trudo, push) as if removed from the usual course of thought or out of the way of apprehension or discovery, the thought is remote, hidden; in that which is obscure there may be nothing to hide; it is hard to see to the bottom of the profound, because of its depth, but the most shallow turbidness is obscure. Compare COMPLEX; DARK; DIFFICULT; MYSTERIOUS.

    See synonyms for CLEAR.

    Synonyms:
    abstruse, ambiguous, cloudy, complex, complicated, dark, darksome, deep, dense, difficult, dim, doubtful, dusky, enigmatical, hidden, incomprehensible, indistinct, intricate, involved, muddy, mysterious, profound, turbid, unintelligible

Complete Dictionary of Synonyms and Antonyms0.0 / 0 votes

  1. obscureadjective

    Synonyms:
    dark, dim, lowering, indistinct, enigmatical, uncertain, doubtful, unascertained, humble, unintelligible, mean

    Antonyms:
    bright, luminous, distinct, lucid, plain, plain spoken, intelligible, unambiguous, ascertained, eminent, prominent

  2. obscureverb

    Synonyms:
    conceal, darken

    Antonyms:
    reveal, make known, discover

Princeton's WordNet5.0 / 1 vote

  1. obscure, vagueadjective

    not clearly understood or expressed

    "an obscure turn of phrase"; "an impulse to go off and fight certain obscure battles of his own spirit"-Anatole Broyard; "their descriptions of human behavior become vague, dull, and unclear"- P.A.Sorokin; "vague...forms of speech...have so long passed for mysteries of science"- John Locke

    Synonyms:
    unnoticeable, dark, hidden, faint, shadowy, unknown, apart(p), vague, dim, isolated, undefined, wispy, unsung

    Antonyms:
    glorious, unconcealed, comprehendible, conspicuous, comprehensible, clear, connected

  2. dark, obscureadjective

    marked by difficulty of style or expression

    "much that was dark is now quite clear to me"; "those who do not appreciate Kafka's work say his style is obscure"

    Synonyms:
    vague, sullen, unnoticeable, glum, dismal, dark, moody, apart(p), coloured, disconsolate, dark-skinned, black, gloomy, benighted, non-white, blue, glowering, sour, unknown, sinister, grim, dour, hidden, saturnine, sorry, drab, dingy, isolated, dreary, drear, unsung, morose

    Antonyms:
    clear, comprehendible, comprehensible, connected, unconcealed, glorious, conspicuous

  3. hidden, obscureadjective

    difficult to find

    "hidden valleys"; "a hidden cave"; "an obscure retreat"

    Synonyms:
    unnoticeable, dark, hidden, apart(p), out of sight, unknown, concealed, vague, isolated, secret, unsung

    Antonyms:
    conspicuous, glorious, comprehensible, connected, clear, comprehendible, unconcealed

  4. obscure, unknown, unsungadjective

    not famous or acclaimed

    "an obscure family"; "unsung heroes of the war"

    Synonyms:
    unnoticeable, dark, hidden, unnamed, unvalued, strange, unknown, unidentified, apart(p), vague, isolated, unappreciated, nameless, unsung

    Antonyms:
    glorious, connected, conspicuous, comprehendible, clear, comprehensible, unconcealed

  5. obscure, unnoticeableadjective

    not drawing attention

    "an unnoticeable cigarette burn on the carpet"; "an obscure flaw"

    Synonyms:
    unnoticeable, dark, hidden, unknown, apart(p), vague, unobtrusive, isolated, unsung

    Antonyms:
    comprehendible, unconcealed, comprehensible, conspicuous, clear, glorious, connected

  6. apart(p), isolated, obscureverb

    remote and separate physically or socially

    "existed over the centuries as a world apart"; "preserved because they inhabited a place apart"- W.H.Hudson; "tiny isolated villages remote from centers of civilization"; "an obscure village"

    Antonyms:
    conspicuous, unconcealed, comprehendible, comprehensible, connected, clear, glorious

  7. obscure, befog, becloud, obnubilate, haze over, fog, cloud, mistverb

    make less visible or unclear

    "The stars are obscured by the clouds"; "the big elm tree obscures our view of the valley"

    Synonyms:
    veil, mist, dapple, confuse, blot out, corrupt, overcloud, defile, becloud, fog, blur, haze over, befog, mottle, obnubilate, mist over, obliterate, overcast, taint, bedim, hide, sully, cloud

    Antonyms:
    glorious, clear, comprehensible, unconcealed, conspicuous, connected, comprehendible

  8. confuse, blur, obscure, obnubilateverb

    make unclear, indistinct, or blurred

    "Her remarks confused the debate"; "Their words obnubilate their intentions"

    Synonyms:
    fuddle, film over, slur, confound, befuddle, fog, fox, confuse, becloud, jumble, cloud, smutch, mix up, glaze over, flurry, bedim, blot out, dim, mist, blur, throw, obliterate, haze over, overcloud, smear, hide, put off, smudge, befog, veil, disconcert, discombobulate, blear, bedevil, obnubilate

    Antonyms:
    connected, conspicuous, comprehendible, unconcealed, comprehensible, glorious, clear

  9. obscure, bedim, overcloudverb

    make obscure or unclear

    "The distinction was obscured"

    Synonyms:
    veil, mist, benight, confuse, blot out, overcloud, becloud, fog, cloud over, blur, haze over, befog, obnubilate, obliterate, bedim, hide, cloud, cloud up

    Antonyms:
    conspicuous, unconcealed, comprehensible, glorious, connected, clear, comprehendible

  10. obscureverb

    reduce a vowel to a neutral one, such as a schwa

    Synonyms:
    veil, overcloud, haze over, blur, cloud, befog, hide, fog, obliterate, bedim, becloud, obnubilate, mist, confuse, blot out

    Antonyms:
    conspicuous, connected, comprehendible, glorious, unconcealed, clear, comprehensible

  11. obscure, blot out, obliterate, veil, hideverb

    make undecipherable or imperceptible by obscuring or concealing

    "a hidden message"; "a veiled threat"

    Synonyms:
    shroud, veil, mist, wipe out, confuse, blot out, enshroud, overcloud, kill, becloud, fog, blur, conceal, haze over, befog, obnubilate, cover, obliterate, hide out, efface, bedim, hide, cloud

    Antonyms:
    clear, conspicuous, unconcealed, connected, comprehensible, comprehendible, glorious

Matched Categories

Synonyms, Antonyms & Associated Words0.0 / 0 votes

  1. obscureadjective

    Synonyms:
    abstruse, vague, recondite, indefinite, ambiguous, humble, inglorious, mean, undistinguished, secluded, retired, remote, shaded, darkened

  2. obscureverb

    Synonyms:
    darken, obfuscate, bedim, eclipse, involve, dissemble, disguise, confuse

Suggested Resources

  1. obscure

    Song lyrics by obscure -- Explore a large variety of song lyrics performed by obscure on the Lyrics.com website.

How to pronounce obscure?

How to say obscure in sign language?

Words popularity by usage frequency

rankingword
#271black
#618blue
#846cover
#1008mean
#1376involved
#1543deep
#1640dark
#1702unknown
#1758complex
#1928difficult
#2263sorry
#2600secret
#2880hide
#2936hidden
#3096kill
#3222fox
#3929strange
#4404throw
#4709cloudy
#5519mask
#5621cloud
#6462isolated
#6529undefined
#7037complicated
#8103fog
#9389dim
#9735mysterious
#9770dense
#11321profound
#11666uncertain
#11816coloured
#11969corrupt
#11990moody
#12027sour
#12091mist
#12155humble
#12580lowering
#12929unclear
#13380obscure
#14437vague
#14856grim
#15135faint
#16455concealed
#16852unidentified
#17229shady
#17738veil
#17795ambiguous
#17805opaque
#17984blur
#18321muddy
#18673unnamed
#19046overcast
#19559sinister
#20060confuse
#20066doubtful
#20086intricate
#21091disguise
#22663smear
#24594conceal
#24774esoteric
#28539dismal
#28701gloomy
#29728arcane
#31722shroud
#31754nameless
#32152jumble
#35156flurry
#37338dreary
#37424enigmatic
#38136murky
#38689shadowy
#39077incomprehensible
#41477sully
#43052drab
#44761unsung
#45217unintelligible
#45530dusky
#46613taint
#47406unobtrusive
#49676smudge
#55901darken
#58318dingy
#58451sullen
#59341slur
#59581confound
#67973indistinct
#68562overshadow
#68728dour
#72502obliterate
#77107glum
#78097defile
#86369morose
#88701turbid
#88921obfuscate
#89982wispy
#101048unappreciated
#113745abstruse
#116500benighted
#121706mottle
#130992dapple
#146622unnoticeable
#167212disconsolate
#169244drear
#179743efface
#186740saturnine
#189431befuddle
#195687glowering
#216211bedevil
#270504fuddle
#311709disconcert

How to use obscure in a sentence?

  1. Thales:

    The past is certain, the future obscure.

  2. Harold Rosenberg:

    One of the grotesqueries of present-day American life is the amount of reasoning that goes into displaying the wisdom secreted in bad movies while proving that modern art is meaningless. They have put into practice the notion that a bad art work cleverly interpreted according to some obscure Method is more rewarding than a masterpiece wrapped in silence.

  3. David Seabury:

    Intellectual comradeship requires that you think your thoughts through to the place where you can make the complex seem simple, the obscure quite clear.

  4. Henri-Frédéric Amiel:

    The obscure only exists that it may cease to exist. In it lies the opportunity of all victory and all progress. Whether it call itself fatality, death, night, or matter, it is the pedestal of life, of light, of liberty and the spirit. For it represents resistance -- that is to say, the fulcrum of all activity, the occasion for its development and its triumph.

  5. Henri Frdric Amiel:

    Action is only coarsened thought-thought becomes concrete, obscure, and unconscious.


Translations for obscure

From our Multilingual Translation Dictionary

  • غام, مظلمArabic
  • nezřetelný, temnýCzech
  • obskur, verdunkeln, verdecken, undeutlich, verschleiern, unbedeutend, düster, vernebelnGerman
  • obscuro, ocultar, esconderSpanish
  • مبهمPersian
  • hämärtää, huomaamaton, vaikeaselkoinen, piilottaa, hämärä, piiloutunutFinnish
  • obscur, sibyllin, obscurcirFrench
  • kétes hírű, tompaHungarian
  • oscurato, confuso, vago, nascosto, indistinto, poco chiaro, oscuroItalian
  • 朦朧, 不明瞭Japanese
  • 애매한Korean
  • caecōLatin
  • whakarehurehu, rehurehuMāori
  • нејасен, мрачен, замагленMacedonian
  • duister, verborgenDutch
  • obskurNorwegian
  • [[mało]] [[znany]], schować, ukryć, zaciemnić, ciemny, niewyraźny, ukryty, przesłonićPolish
  • obscuroPortuguese
  • întuneca, obscur, retras, ascuns, oculta, ascunde, obscura, întunecosRomanian
  • прятать, безвестный, скрывать, непонятный, неясный, смутный, скрытый, тёмный, затемнятьRussian
  • mörkSwedish
  • தெளிவற்றTamil
  • незрозумілийUkrainian
  • che khuấtVietnamese
  • 朦胧Chinese

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"obscure." Synonyms.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 19 Mar. 2024. <https://www.synonyms.com/synonym/obscure>.

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