Definitions for obscurity
əbˈskyʊər ɪ tiob·scu·ri·ty

Princeton's WordNetRate this definition:5.0 / 1 vote

1. obscureness, obscurity, abstruseness, reconditenessnoun

   the quality of being unclear or abstruse and hard to understand

2. obscuritynoun

   an obscure and unimportant standing; not well known

   "he worked in obscurity for many years"

3. obscurity, obscurenessnoun

   the state of being indistinct or indefinite for lack of adequate illumination

WiktionaryRate this definition:4.0 / 1 vote

1. obscuritynoun

   Darkness; the absence of light

2. obscuritynoun

   The state of being unknown; a thing that is unknown

3. obscuritynoun

   The quality of being difficult to understand; a thing that is difficult to understand

Samuel Johnson's DictionaryRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. Obscureness, Obscuritynoun

   Etymology: obscuritas, Lat. obscurité, Fr.

   1. Darkness; want of light.

   Lo! a day of darkness and obscurity, tribulation and anguish, upon the earth. Esther xi. 8.

   Should Cynthia quit thee, Venus, and each star,
   It would not form one thought dark as mine are:
   I could lend them obscureness now, and say,
   Out of myself there should be no more day. John Donne.

   2. Unnoticed state; privacy.

   You are not for obscurity design’d,
   But, like the sun, must cheer all human kind. Dryd.

   3. Darkness of meaning.

   Not to mention that obscureness that attends prophetic raptures, there are divers things knowable by the bare light of nature, which yet are so uneasy to be satisfactorily understood by our imperfect intellects, that let them be delivered in the clearest expressions, the notions themselves will yet appear obscure. Robert Boyle, on Colours.

   That this part of sacred scripture had difficulties in it: many causes of obscurity did readily occur to me. John Locke.

   What lies beyond our positive idea towards infinity, lies in obscurity, and has the undeterminate confusion of a negative idea, wherein I know I do not comprehend all I would, it being too large for a finite capacity. John Locke.

ChatGPTRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. obscurity

   Obscurity refers to the state or quality of being unknown, inconspicuous, or difficult to understand, see, or interpret. It may relate to being incomprehensible due to complexity or vagueness, or to be under-recognized, undistinguished, or forgotten by the public.

Webster DictionaryRate this definition:4.0 / 1 vote

1. Obscuritynoun

   the quality or state of being obscure; darkness; privacy; inconspicuousness; unintelligibleness; uncertainty

Matched Categories

1. • Incomprehensibility
   • Semidarkness
   • Standing

How to pronounce obscurity?

1. Alex

   US English

   David

   US English

   Mark

   US English

   Daniel

   British

   Libby

   British

   Mia

   British

   Karen

   Australian

   Hayley

   Australian

   Natasha

   Australian

   Veena

   Indian

   Priya

   Indian

   Neerja

   Indian

   Zira

   US English

   Oliver

   British

   Wendy

   British

   Fred

   US English

   Tessa

   South African

How to say obscurity in sign language?

Numerology

1. Chaldean Numerology

   The numerical value of obscurity in Chaldean Numerology is: 2

2. Pythagorean Numerology

   The numerical value of obscurity in Pythagorean Numerology is: 6

Examples of obscurity in a Sentence

1. Nigel Farage:

   We may just finish the whole thing off and (Tony) Blair can disappear off into total obscurity.

2. Nigel Farage:

   I think if we had a second referendum on European Union membership, we ’d kill it off for a generation, the percentage that would vote to leave next time would be very much bigger than it was last time round and we may just finish the whole thing off and Tony Blair can disappear off into total obscurity.

3. Plutarch:

   Learn to be pleased with everything with wealth, so far as it makes us beneficial to others with poverty, for not having much to care for, and with obscurity, for being unenvied.

4. Chateaubriand:

   What importance can we attach to the things of this world? Friendship? It disappears when the one who is liked comes to grief, or the one who likes becomes powerful. Love? it is deceived, fleeting, or guilty. Fame? You share it with mediocrity or crime. Fortune? Could that frivolity be counted a blessing? All that remains are those so-called happy days that flow past unnoticed in the obscurity of domestic cares, leaving man with the desire neither to lose his life nor to begin it over.

5. Martin Luther King, Jr.:

   Ten thousand fools proclaim themselves into obscurity, while one wise man forgets himself into immortality.

Popularity rank by frequency of use