obscure

verb

(transitive) To render obscure; to darken; to make dim; to keep in the dark; to hide; to make less visible, intelligible, legible, glorious, beautiful, or illustrious.

(transitive) To hide, put out of sight etc.

(intransitive, obsolete) To conceal oneself; to hide.

adjective

Difficult to understand; abstruse.

Not well-known.

Unknown or uncertain; unclear.

Hidden, out of sight or inconspicuous.

Dark, faint or indistinct.

Roots

obob- · Latin · over, against scurusscure- · Latin · covered

Words related to obscure

obscureradj obscurementn obscurestadj obscurenessn obscuritiesn tenebrificadj obscurelyadv nebuloseadj obscurationn enigmaticaladj darkle obscurantadj shroudedv

Synonyms & related words for obscure

Find synonyms, related words, and the definition of obscure — including obnubilate, bedim, befog, becloud, unsung, vague. Dendril is a free visual thesaurus that shows them on an interactive map where stronger matches sit closer to the center — no signup, no ads.

Words related to obscure

Explore words related to obscure — words associated with it, words that go with it, and its nearest matches in meaning. Related words include obscurer, obscurement, obscurest, obscureness, obscurities, tenebrific, obscurely, nebulose. Click any word to make it the center of the map and keep exploring the web of connections.

Synonyms for obscure

Common synonyms for obscure include obnubilate, bedim, befog, becloud, unsung, vague, hidden, overcloud — words that share a close meaning. Hover or tap any word on the map for its definition and part of speech.

Where does obscure come from?

The word obscure breaks down into 2 roots of Latin origin: ob-, from Latin ob (“over, against”); and scure, from Latin scurus (“covered”). Explore each root to see other English words built from the same source.