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. Barbara Mikkelson:

    Perhaps better we not obscure the idea that happiness and misery, kindness and greed, and good works and bad deeds are within the capacities of us all, not merely a select few.

  2. Horace:

    I strive to be brief, and become obscure.

  3. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart:

    We say that the hour of death cannot be forecast, but when we say this we imagine that hour as placed in an obscure and distant future. It never occurs to us that it has any connection with the day already begun or that death could arrive this same afternoon, this afternoon which is so certain and which has every hour filled in advance.

  4. Ron Wyden:

    This is a dramatic expansion of the government’s hacking and surveillance authority, such a substantive change with an enormous impact on Americans’ constitutional rights should be debated by Congress, not maneuvered through an obscure bureaucratic process.

  5. Henry Miller:

    The great work must inevitably be obscure, except to the very few, to those who like the author himself are initiated into the mysteries. Communication then is secondary: it is perpetuation which is important. For this only one good reader is necessary.


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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    A word similar to "limited"?
    A immoderate
    B circumscribed
    C general
    D unqualified

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