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obscure
Not clearly expressed or understood
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Definitions
adjective
Not clearly expressed or understood
“An obscure turn of phrase”
adjective
Marked by difficulty of style or expression
“Much that was dark is now quite clear to me”
adjective
Remote and separate physically or socially
“Existed over the centuries as a world apart”
adjective
Not drawing attention
“An unnoticeable cigarette burn on the carpet”
adjective
Not famous or acclaimed
“An obscure family”
adjective
Difficult to find
“Hidden valleys”
verb
Make unintelligible or unclear
“The distinction was obscured”
verb
Make undecipherable or imperceptible by obscuring or concealing
“A hidden message”
verb
Reduce a vowel to a neutral one, such as a schwa
verb
Make unclear, indistinct, or blurred
“Her remarks confused the debate”
verb
Make less visible or unclear
“The stars are obscured by the clouds”
In context
Example Sentences
An obscure turn of phrase
{'source': 'Anatole Broyard', 'text': 'an impulse to go off and fight certain obscure battles of his own spirit'}
{'source': 'P.A.Sorokin', 'text': 'their descriptions of human behavior become vague, dull, and unclear'}
{'source': 'John Locke', 'text': 'vague … forms of speech … have so long passed for mysteries of science'}
Much that was dark is now quite clear to me
Those who do not appreciate Kafka's work say his style is obscure
Existed over the centuries as a world apart
{'source': 'W.H.Hudson', 'text': 'preserved because they inhabited a place apart'}
Tiny isolated villages remote from centers of civilization
An obscure village
An unnoticeable cigarette burn on the carpet
An obscure flaw
An obscure family
Unsung heroes of the war
Hidden valleys
A hidden cave
An obscure retreat
The distinction was obscured
A hidden message
A veiled threat
Her remarks confused the debate
Their words obnubilate their intentions
The stars are obscured by the clouds
The big elm tree obscures our view of the valley
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