obscurity

English

Etymology

From Middle English obscurite, obscuryte, from Middle French obscurité and its etymon Latin obscūritās. By surface analysis, obscure +‎ -ity.

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /əbˈskjʊəɹɪti/, /əbˈskjɔːɹɪti/
• (General American) IPA^(key): /əbˈskjʊɹɪti/, /əbˈskjɝɪti/

• Audio (US):

  (file)

• Hyphenation: ob‧scur‧ity

Noun

obscurity (countable and uncountable, plural obscurities)

1. (literary) Darkness; the absence of light.
   • 1907 January, Harold Bindloss, chapter 6, in The Dust of Conflict, 1st Canadian edition, Toronto, Ont.: McLeod & Allen, →OCLC:

     The night was considerably clearer than anybody on board her desired when the schooner Ventura headed for the land. It rose in places, black and sharp against the velvety indigo, over her dipping bow, though most of the low littoral was wrapped in obscurity.

   • 1919, W[illiam] Somerset Maugham, “chapter 24”, in The Moon and Sixpence, [New York, N.Y.]: Grosset & Dunlap Publishers […], →OCLC:

     I walked in, and Stroeve followed me. The room was in darkness. I could only see that it was an attic, with a sloping roof; and a faint glimmer, no more than a less profound obscurity, came from a skylight.

2. The state of being unknown; a thing that is unknown.
   • 1921, Ben Travers, chapter 5, in A Cuckoo in the Nest, Garden City, N.Y.: Doubleday, Page & Company, published 1925, →OCLC:

     The departure was not unduly prolonged. […] Within the door Mrs. Spoker hastily imparted to Mrs. Love a few final sentiments […] ; a deep, guttural instigation to the horse; and the wheels of the waggonette crunched heavily away into obscurity.

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

Synonyms

• (the state of being unknown): unknownness

Antonyms

• (antonym(s) of “the state of being known”): fame
• (antonym(s) of “the state of being clear”): clarity

Derived terms

• security through obscurity

Related terms

• obscure

Translations

darkness; the absence of light

• Asturian: escuridá (ast) f
• Bulgarian: тъмнина (bg) f (tǎmnina), мрак (bg) m (mrak)
• French: obscurité (fr) f
• Greek: σκότος (el) n (skótos), σκοτεινότητα (el) f (skoteinótita)
• Italian: oscurità (it) f
• Japanese: 闇 (ja) (yami), 暗黒 (ja) (ankoku)
• Polish: mrok (pl) m, ciemność (pl) f
• Portuguese: obscuridade (pt) f
• Romanian: obscuritate (ro) f
• Russian: мрак (ru) m (mrak), темнота́ (ru) f (temnotá), тьма (ru) f (tʹma)
• Spanish: oscuridad (es) f
• Tarifit: taǧǧest f

The state of being unknown; a thing that is unknown

• Bulgarian: неизвестност (bg) f (neizvestnost)
• Greek: αφάνεια (el) f (afáneia), ασημότητα (el) f (asimótita), ταπεινότητα (el) f (tapeinótita)

  Ancient: ἀφάνεια f (apháneia)

• Hindi: अख्याति (hi) (akhyāti)
• Irish: ^{(please verify)} anaithne f, aduaine f
• Japanese: 無名 (ja) (mumei)
• Russian: неизве́стность (ru) f (neizvéstnostʹ), безве́стность (ru) f (bezvéstnostʹ)

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

• Arabic: إِبْهَام (ar) m (ʔibhām)
• Bulgarian: неразбираемост (bg) f (nerazbiraemost)
• Greek: ασάφεια (el) f (asáfeia), θολότητα (el) f (tholótita)

  Ancient: ἀμαυρότης f (amaurótēs)

• Hindi: गहनता (gahantā), दुर्बोध्यता (hi) (durbodhyatā)
• Irish: ^{(please verify)} anaithne f, aduaine f
• Latin: obscūritās f
• Russian: нея́сность (ru) f (nejásnostʹ)