i Register
In some senses, abstruse is marked as formal, obsolete. Watch for register when choosing this word.
abstruse
UK /əbˈstɹuːs/ US /əbˈstɹus/
adj 2
Collocations
4ADJ.
unclear
VERB + ABSTRUSE
solve
ABSTRUSE + NOUN
problem
ADV.
purposefully, such
Definitions
adj
1
Difficult to comprehend or understand; obscure.
Some time the good makithe an ile end⸝ ãd the ile a godd. In this opiniõ⸝ and in ſcrutable miſterie be werithe all his wittes⸝ and at the end of his cogitacions⸝ fyndithe more abſtruſe⸝ and doutfull obiections thẽ at the beginning⸝ […]
Be leſs abſtruſe, my riddling days are paſt.
2
Concealed or hidden; secret.
O vvho is he that could carrie nevves to our olde father, that thou vvert but aliue, although thou vvert hidden in the moſt abſtruſe dungeons of Barbarie; for his riches, my brothers and mine vvould fetch thee from thence.
[T]he abſtruſeſt Things / VVhich in the Mindes dark Temper neſtling ly, / By you expoſed are to every Eye.
Thesaurus
Idioms & Phrases
Example Bank
501
Some time the good makithe an ile end⸝ ãd the ile a godd. In this opiniõ⸝ and in ſcrutable miſterie be werithe all his wittes⸝ and at the end of his cogitacions⸝ fyndithe more abſtruſe⸝ and doutfull o
Wiktionary02
Be leſs abſtruſe, my riddling days are paſt.
Wiktionary03
Thoſe propoſitions relating to the Moon's motion, which are demonſtrated in the Principia [by Isaac Newton], do generally depend on calculations very intricate and abſtruſe, the truth of which is not
Wiktionary04
No one could solve such an abstruse problem.
Tatoeba · #221066105
Professionals in many fields write in a style that is purposefully abstruse and unclear.
Tatoeba · #5991319Usage Notes
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