obscurity (redirected from obscurities)

ob·scu·ri·ty  (b-skyr-t, b-)

n. pl. ob·scu·ri·ties

1. Deficiency or absence of light; darkness.

2.

a. The quality or condition of being unknown: "Even utter obscurity need not be an obstacle to [political] success" (New Republic).

b. One that is unknown.

3.

a. The quality or condition of being imperfectly known or difficult to understand: "writings meant to be understood . . . by all, composed without deliberate obscurity or hidden motives" (National Review).

b. An instance of being imperfectly known or difficult to understand.

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obscurity [əbˈskjʊərɪtɪ]

n pl -ties

1. the state or quality of being obscure

2. an obscure person or thing

Thesaurus

Noun	1.	obscurity - the quality of being unclear or abstruse and hard to understand abstruseness, reconditeness, obscureness incomprehensibility - the quality of being incomprehensible clarity, clearness, limpidity, lucidity, lucidness, pellucidity - free from obscurity and easy to understand; the comprehensibility of clear expression
	2.	obscurity - an obscure and unimportant standing; not well known; "he worked in obscurity for many years" standing - social or financial or professional status or reputation; "of equal standing"; "a member in good standing" anonymity, namelessness - the state of being anonymous humbleness, lowliness, obscureness, unimportance - the state of being humble and unimportant nowhere - an insignificant place; "he came out of nowhere" limbo, oblivion - the state of being disregarded or forgotten prominence - the state of being prominent: widely known or eminent
	3.	obscurity - the state of being indistinct or indefinite for lack of adequate illumination obscureness semidarkness - partial darkness

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obscurity

noun

1. insignificance, oblivion, unimportance, non-recognition, inconsequence, lowliness, inconspicuousness, namelessness, ingloriousness His later life was spent in obscurity and loneliness.

2. vagueness, complexity, ambiguity, intricacy, incomprehensibility, inexactitude, woolliness, abstruseness, impreciseness, impenetrableness, reconditeness, lack of preciseness Hunt was irritated by the obscurity of his reply.
vagueness clarity, lucidity, explicitness, obviousness, clearness, comprehensibility

3. enigma, mystery, puzzle, problem, difficulty, complexity, riddle, conundrum Whatever its obscurities, the poem was clear on one count.

4. darkness, dark, shadows, shade, gloom, haze, blackness, murk, dimness, murkiness, haziness, duskiness, shadiness, shadowiness, indistinctness the vast branches vanished into deep indigo obscurity above my head

Translations

obscurity [əbˈskjʊərɪtɪ] N

1. (= the unknown) → oscuridad f
to live in obscurity → vivir en la oscuridad
she rose from obscurity to be a leading name in fashion → salió de la nada para llegar a ser un nombre destacado del mundo de la moda
the band faded into obscurity → el grupo cayó en el olvido

2. (= complexity) [of language, idea] → oscuridad f
obscurities (in a book) → puntos mpl oscuros

3. (liter) (= darkness) → oscuridad f

obscurity [əbˈskjʊərəti] n

[unknown person, thing] → obscurité f

[reply, statement] → caractère m obscur

obscurity

n

no pl (of a wood, night) → Dunkelheit f, → Finsternis f, → Dunkel nt

(of style, ideas, argument) → Unklarheit f, → Unverständlichkeit f, → Verworrenheit f; to lapse into obscurity → verworren or unklar werden; he threw some light on the obscurities of the text → er erhellte einige der unklaren Textstellen

no pl (of birth, origins) → Dunkel nt; to live in obscurity → zurückgezogen leben; to rise from obscurity → aus dem Nichts auftauchen; in spite of the obscurity of his origins → trotz seiner unbekannten Herkunft; to sink into obscurity → in Vergessenheit geraten

obscurity [əbˈskjʊərɪtɪ] n (also) (fig) → oscurità f inv