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obscure
adjective as in not easily understood
Strongest matches
ambiguous, arcane, complicated, confusing, cryptic, enigmatic, esoteric, mysterious, vague
Weak matches
abstruse, clear as mud, dark, deep, doubtful, enigmatical, far-out, hazy, illegible, illogical, impenetrable, incomprehensible, inconceivable, incredible, indecisive, indefinite, indeterminate, indistinct, inexplicable, inscrutable, insoluble, intricate, opaque, recondite, unaccountable, unbelievable, unclear, undefined, unfathomable, unintelligible
adjective as in cloudy, shadowy
Strongest match
Weak matches
caliginous, dark, dense, dusky, fuliginous, gloomy, indistinct, lightless, shady, somber, tenebrous, umbrageous, unilluminated, unlit
adjective as in out-of-the-way, little-known
Strongest matches
arcane, cryptic, distant, enigmatic, esoteric, humble, inaccessible, irrelevant, minor, mysterious, odd, rare, remote, secluded, secretive, undisclosed, undistinguished, unknown
Weak matches
abstruse, cabalistic, dark, deep, devious, far, far-off, inconspicuous, inglorious, invisible, lonesome, lowly, nameless, oracular, orphic, recondite, reticent, secret, seldom seen, solitary, unheard-of, unhonored, unimportant, unnoted, unseen, unsung
verb as in conceal, hide
Strongest matches
belie, blind, block out, blur, camouflage, cloud, confuse, cover, cover up, darken, dim, disguise, eclipse, mask, misrepresent, muddy, overshadow, shroud, veil
Strong matches
adumbrate, becloud, bedim, befog, blear, block, cloak, con, equivocate, falsify, fog, gray, haze, mist, murk, obfuscate, overcast, overcloud, pettifog, screen, shade, shadow, stonewall, wrap
Weak matches
cloud the issue, double-talk, fuzz, gloom, muddy the waters, throw up smoke screen
Example Sentences
After the Kremlin launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine, many Western countries imposed sanctions on Russian energy, which Moscow is accused of dodging by shipping oil on aged tankers often with obscure ownership or insurance.
Behind a patch of sand is a forest of vegetation so thick and so tall that it obscures the inland.
“I checked the occult bookstores, the spooky carnivals, the abandoned cemeteries, and all the obscure and little-trafficked corners of the city. Nothing!”
The ink had run; the text, where it survived, was written in enigmatic verse, and the centerfold map was almost completely obscured with smears and blotchy stains.
In the sky: a full moon, its eerie glow partially obscured by dark, swirling clouds.
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From Roget's 21st Century Thesaurus, Third Edition Copyright © 2013 by the Philip Lief Group.
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