un·clear

(ŭn-klîr′)

adj. un·clear·er, un·clear·est

1. Not expressed clearly: The host's directions to the beach house were unclear, so many guests got lost on the way.

2. Confused or doubtful; not certain: Our discussion left me unclear as to what you wanted me to do.

American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

unclear

(ʌnˈklɪə)

adj

not clear or definite; ambiguous

unˈclearly adv

unˈclearness n

Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014

ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:

Adj.	1.	unclear - poorly stated or described; "he confuses the reader with ill-defined terms and concepts" ill-defined
	2.	unclear - not clear to the mind; "the law itself was unclear on that point"; "the reason for their actions is unclear to this day" ambiguous - having more than one possible meaning; "ambiguous words"; "frustrated by ambiguous instructions, the parents were unable to assemble the toy" opaque - not transmitting or reflecting light or radiant energy; impenetrable to sight; "opaque windows of the jail"; "opaque to X-rays" uncomprehensible, incomprehensible - difficult to understand; "the most incomprehensible thing about the universe is that it is comprehensible"- A. Einstein indefinite - vague or not clearly defined or stated; "must you be so indefinite?"; "amorphous blots of color having vague and indefinite edges"; "he would not answer so indefinite a proposal" indistinct - not clearly defined or easy to perceive or understand; "indistinct shapes in the gloom"; "an indistinct memory"; "only indistinct notions of what to do" clear - readily apparent to the mind; "a clear and present danger"; "a clear explanation"; "a clear case of murder"; "a clear indication that she was angry"; "gave us a clear idea of human nature"
	3.	unclear - not easily deciphered; "indecipherable handwriting" indecipherable, undecipherable, unreadable illegible - (of handwriting, print, etc.) not legible; "illegible handwriting"

unclear

adjective

1. uncertain, unknown, doubtful, confused, vague, unsettled, in doubt, unsure, ambiguous, unresolved, in the balance, indefinite, debatable, up in the air, indeterminate, open to question, undetermined It is unclear how much popular support they have.
uncertain evident, intelligible, determinate

2. unsure, confused, doubtful, vague, dubious, wavering, unresolved, hesitant, undecided, hazy, indecisive, vacillating, in two minds, equivocating, irresolute He is still unclear about his own future.

Collins Thesaurus of the English Language – Complete and Unabridged 2nd Edition. 2002 © HarperCollins Publishers 1995, 2002

unclear

adjective

1. Liable to more than one interpretation:

ambiguous, cloudy, equivocal, inexplicit, nebulous, obscure, uncertain, vague.

2. Not affording certainty:

ambiguous, borderline, chancy, clouded, doubtful, dubious, dubitable, equivocal, inconclusive, indecisive, indeterminate, problematic, problematical, questionable, uncertain, unsure.

Informal: iffy.

Idioms: at issue, in doubt, in question.

3. Not clearly perceived or perceptible:

blear, bleary, cloudy, dim, faint, foggy, fuzzy, hazy, indefinite, indistinct, misty, obscure, shadowy, undistinct, vague.

Translations

غَيْرُ وَاضِح

nejasný

uklar

epäselvä

nejasan

不明瞭な

명확하지 않은

oklar

ซึ่งไม่ชัดเจน

net değil

không rõ ràng

不清楚的

unclear

[ˌʌnˈklɪəʳ] ADJ

1. (= not obvious) the reasons for this behaviour are unclear → las razones de este comportamiento no están claras
it is unclear what effect this will have → no se sabe muy bien qué efectos tendrá esto
the impact of these changes remains unclear → el impacto de estos cambios sigue sin conocerse con seguridad

2. (= not specific) he was unclear about the details of what had happened → no fue muy claro respecto a los detalles de lo que había sucedido

3. (= confusing) → poco claro
the wording of the contract is unclear → los términos del contrato son poco claros

4. (= unsure) to be unclear about sth → no tener algo muy claro
I'm still unclear about it → todavía no lo tengo muy claro

Collins Spanish Dictionary - Complete and Unabridged 8th Edition 2005 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1971, 1988 © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2003, 2005

unclear

[ʌnˈklɪə^r] adj

(= not obvious) [reasons, motive, plans] → obscur(e)
The reasons for this remained unclear → Les raisons à cela restaient obscures.
it is unclear whether ... → on ne sait si ...
It is unclear how much support they have → On ne sait pas grand chose du soutien dont ils disposent.
it remains unclear whether ... → on ne sait toujours pas si ...
It remains unclear whether his death was murder or suicide

to be unclear about sth (= not know) → ne pas être sûr de savoir qch
I'm still unclear about what I'm supposed to do → Je ne suis toujours pas sûr de savoir ce que je suis censé faire.

(= difficult to understand) [instructions, diagram, handwriting] → qui n'est pas clair(e)
His instructions were unclear → Ses instructions n'étaient pas claires.Uncle Sam [ˌʌŋk^əlˈsæm] n → l'Oncle Sam m

Collins English/French Electronic Resource. © HarperCollins Publishers 2005

unclear

adj → unklar; essay etc → undurchsichtig; to be unclear about something → sich (dat) → über etw (acc) → im Unklaren or nicht im Klaren sein; his motives are unclear to me → mir sind seine Motive nicht klar; it is unclear to me why … → es ist mir unklar or nicht klar, warum …

Collins German Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged 7th Edition 2005. © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1980 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1997, 1999, 2004, 2005, 2007

unclear

[ʌnˈklɪəʳ] adj → non chiaro/a
I'm still unclear about what I'm supposed to do → non ho ancora ben capito cosa dovrei fare

unclear

→ غَيْرُ وَاضِح nejasný uklar unklar ασαφής poco claro epäselvä flou nejasan oscuro 不明瞭な 명확하지 않은 onduidelijk uklar niejasny obscuro неясный oklar ซึ่งไม่ชัดเจน net değil không rõ ràng 不清楚的

Mentioned in

References in classic literature

The flour pan in which their daily bread was mixed stood on the rude table side by side with the "prospecting pans," half full of gold washed up from their morning's work; the front windows of the newer tenements looked upon the one single thoroughfare, but the back door opened upon the uncleared wilderness, still haunted by the misshapen bulk of bear or the nightly gliding of catamount.

View in context

SUMMER drew to an end, and early autumn: it was past Michaelmas, but the harvest was late that year, and a few of our fields were still uncleared. Mr.

View in context

Joan rode on among the avenues of young cocoanut-palms, saw a hornbill, followed it in its erratic flights to the high forest on the edge of the plantation, heard the cooing of wild pigeons and located them in the deeper woods, followed the fresh trail of a wild pig for a distance, circled back, and took the narrow path for the bungalow that ran through twenty acres of uncleared cane.

View in context

In so vast a country, where there are thousands of millions of acres of land yet unsettled and uncleared, and on every rood of which, vegetable decomposition is annually taking place; where there are so many great rivers, and such opposite varieties of climate; there cannot fail to be a great amount of sickness at certain seasons.

View in context

Along the uncleared course, Short led his party, sounding the brazen trumpet and revelling in the voice of Punch; and at his heels went Thomas Codlin, bearing the show as usual, and keeping his eye on Nelly and her grandfather, as they rather lingered in the rear.

View in context

Snow had been falling all night, making the roadway, uncleared as yet at this early hour, very heavy for the horses.

View in context

US think tank says effectiveness of violent campaign 'unclear' !-- -- (Philstar.com) - July 31, 2019 - 3:35pm MANILA, Philippines It is unclear whether the Philippine government is "winning" the "war on drugs," a US-based think tank said, adding however that it is apparent the campaign that has killed thousands has had an immediate impact on the lives of many.

Winning the 'drug war'? US think tank says effectiveness of violent campaign 'unclear'

Langford said victims were taken to several area hospitals for treatment, though it's unclear how many people were transported, the nature or extent of their injuries or what condition they were in.

Stabbings, shooting lead to Navy Pier stampede

After DHX Media announced that it has received an unsolicited merger proposal from Indian-based conglomerate Sakthi Global Holdings, BMO Capital analyst Tim Casey said that publicly available information on Sakthi is sparse and that the proposal includes only $1.32 per share in cash plus $4 per share of equity in the "merged entity." Given that it is unclear whether Sakthi has the resources to fund the cash component and it is unclear what assets would be placed into the merged entity, an assessment of the implied $4 per share equity value is currently "virtually impossible," Casey tells investors.

BMO 'skeptical' of takeover proposal for DHX Media, advises caution

However, it is unclear whether the reference has been received by the Supreme Judicial Council (SJC) as there is no official confirmation from that end.

Judges face misconduct reference over undeclared foreign properties

The Office of the High Representative (OHR) considers the reasoning to be completely unclear for the establishment of a reserve force of the RS police, and calls on the National Assembly of RS (RSNA) to respond transparently to all the remarks directed towards them on this occasion.

OHR: Unclear reasons for establishment of reserve police in RS

But it's unclear how they happened and police would like to speak to anyone with information.

Mystery over injuries of man aged 30