Hypertext Webster Gateway: "Obscure"
From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) (web1913)
Obscure \Ob*scure"\, v. i.
To conceal one's self; to hide; to keep dark. [Obs.]
How! There's bad news. I must obscure, and hear it.
--Beau. & Fl.
From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) (web1913)
Obscure \Ob*scure"\, n.
Obscurity. [Obs.] --Milton.
From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) (web1913)
Obscure \Ob*scure"\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. {Obscured}; p. pr. &
vb. n. {Obscuring}.] [L. obscurare, fr. obscurus: cf. OF.
obscurer. See {Obscure}, a.]
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.
They are all couched in a pit hard by Herne's oak, with
obscured lights. --Shak.
Why, 't is an office of discovery, love, And I should
be obscured. --Shak.
There is scarce any duty which has been so obscured by
the writings of learned men as this. --Wake.
And seest not sin obscures thy godlike frame? --Dryden.
From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) (web1913)
Obscure \Ob*scure"\, a. [Compar. {Obscurer}; superl.
{Obscurest}.] [L. obscurus, orig., covered; ob- (see {Ob-}) +
a root probably meaning, to cover; cf. L. scutum shield, Skr.
sku to cover: cf.F. obscur. Cf.{Sky}.]
1. Covered over, shaded, or darkened; destitute of light;
imperfectly illuminated; dusky; dim.
His lamp shall be put out in obscure darkness.
--Prov. xx.
20.
2. Of or pertaining to darkness or night; inconspicuous to
the sight; indistinctly seen; hidden; retired; remote from
observation; unnoticed.
The obscure bird Clamored the livelong night.
--Shak.
The obscure corners of the earth. --Sir J.
Davies.
3. Not noticeable; humble; mean. ``O base and obscure
vulgar.'' --Shak. ``An obscure person.'' --Atterbury.
4. Not easily understood; not clear or legible; abstruse or
blind; as, an obscure passage or inscription.
5. Not clear, full, or distinct; clouded; imperfect; as, an
obscure view of remote objects.
{Obscure rays} (Opt.), those rays which are not luminous or
visible, and which in the spectrum are beyond the limits
of the visible portion.
Syn: Dark; dim; darksome; dusky; shadowy; misty; abstruse;
intricate; difficult; mysterious; retired; unnoticed;
unknown; humble; mean; indistinct.
From WordNet (r) 1.7 (wn)
obscure
adj 1: not clearly understood or expressed; "an indeterminate turn
of phrase"; "an impulse to go off and fight certain
obscure battles of his own spirit"-Anatole Broyard;
"their descriptions of human behavior become vague,
dull, and unclear"- P.A.Sorokin; "vague...forms of
speech...have so long passed for mysteries of
science"- John Locke [syn: {indeterminate}, {vague}]
2: marked by difficulty of style or expression; "much that was
dark is now quite clear to me"; "those who do not
appreciate Kafka's work say his style is obscure" [syn: {dark}]
3: difficult to find; "hidden valleys"; "a hidden cave"; "an
obscure retreat" [syn: {hidden}]
4: not famous or acclaimed; "an obscure family"; "unsung heroes
of the war" [syn: {unknown}, {unsung}]
5: not drawing attention; "an unnoticeable cigarette burn on
the carpet"; "an obscure flaw" [syn: {unnoticeable}]
6: remote and separate physically or socially; "existed over
the centuries as a world apart"; "preserved because they
inhabited a place apart"- W.H.Hudson; "tiny isolated
villages remote from centers of civilization"; "an obscure
village" [syn: {apart(p)}, {isolated}]
v 1: make less visible or unclear; "The stars are obscured by the
clouds" [syn: {befog}, {becloud}, {haze over}, {fog}, {cloud},
{mist}]
2: make unclear, indistinct, or blurred; "Her remarks confused
the debate" [syn: {confuse}, {blur}] [ant: {clarify}]
3: make obscure or unclear; "The distinction was obscured"
[syn: {bedim}, {overcloud}] [ant: {clarify}]
4: make undecipherable or imperceptible by obscuring or
concealing [syn: {blot out}, {obliterate}, {hide}]
5: make difficult to perceive by sight; "The foliage of the
huge tree obscures the view of the lake" [syn: {benight},
{bedim}]
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