obscure

1. adjective

1)

the truth is that many aspects of a war's outcome remain obscure for years

Syn:

unclear, uncertain, unknown, in doubt, doubtful, dubious, mysterious, hazy, vague, indeterminate, concealed, hidden

Ant:

clear, obvious

2)

obscure references to Proust

Syn:

abstruse, recondite, arcane, esoteric; mystifying, puzzling, perplexing, baffling, ambiguous, cryptic, enigmatic, Delphic, oracular, oblique, opaque, elliptical, unintelligible, incomprehensible, impenetrable, unfathomable; informal as clear as mud

Ant:

clear, plain

3)

rumors from open-mouth radio shows and obscure web sites

Syn:

little known, unknown, unheard of, unnoticed, undistinguished, unimportant, insignificant, inconsequential, minor, lowly; nameless, anonymous; unsung, unrecognized, forgotten

Ant:

famous, renowned

4)

an obscure shape

Syn:

indistinct, faint, vague, nebulous, ill-defined, unclear, blurred, blurry, misty, hazy; dark, dim, shadowy; literary tenebrous; archaic caliginous

Ant:

distinct

2. verb

1)

a shy and abject manner obscured her prettiness

Syn:

hide, conceal, cover, veil, shroud, screen, mask, cloak, cast a shadow over, shadow, block (out), obliterate, eclipse, darken; literary bedim, enshroud

Ant:

reveal

2)

human rights are often obscured by the shadow of politics

Syn:

confuse, complicate, obfuscate, cloud, blur, muddy; muddy the waters of; literary befog, becloud

Ant:

illuminate, clarify

••

obscure; abstruse; recondite

Obscure is the general term for something that is unclear or not easy to understand; abstruse and recondite are more formal terms. Obscure often expresses dissatisfaction at one's inability to identify something (the causation of his mental disorder is obscure), or, more critically, refers to something that's not sufficiently clearly expressed (the law is too obscure to interpret correctly we find it difficult to address your obscure complaints). A reference to, say, "an obscure congressman" is a dismissive comment, suggesting that this is someone not only little known but perhaps deservedly so. Abstruse is more precise in its meaning — 'difficult to understand' — and usually implies that the subject would be puzzling to most anyone (reading her essays, one wonders if even she can understand her abstruse philosophy). Recondite denotes topics that are known and understood by only a few experts: recondite though their theme may be, they demonstrate that it is not without relevance. There is often a critical suggestion that difficulty or obscurity has been deliberately sought out or magnified.