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Unclear
| Main Entry: |
unclear
|
| Part of Speech: | adjective |
| Definition: | not clear |
| Synonyms: | ambiguous, blurry, cloudy, confused, dim, elusive, fuzzy, hazy, imprecise, intangible, nebulous, obscure, shadowy, uncertain, unsettled, unsure, vague |
| Antonyms: | clear |
| Main Entry: | baffling |
| Part of Speech: | adjective |
| Definition: | puzzling |
| Synonyms: | abstruse, bewildering, beyond one, confusing, difficult to understand, enigmatic, hard to understand, incomprehensible, mystifying, over one's head, perplexing, unclear, unfathomable |
| Antonyms: | clear, comprehensible |
| Main Entry: | borderline |
| Part of Speech: | adjective |
| Definition: | inexact |
| Synonyms: | ambiguous, ambivalent, doubtful, dubitable, equivocal, indecisive, indefinite, indeterminate, marginal, open, problematic, uncertain, unclassifiable, unclear, undecided, unsettled |
| Antonyms: | certain, definite, exact, sure |
| Main Entry: | cryptic |
| Part of Speech: | adjective |
| Definition: | secret; obscure in meaning |
| Synonyms: | Delphian, Delphic, abstruse, ambiguous, apocryphal, arcane, cabalistic, dark, enigmatic, equivocal, esoteric, evasive, hidden, incomprehensible, inexplicable, murky, mysterious, mystic, mystical, mystifying, occult, opaque, oracular, perplexing, puzzling, recondite, secretive, strange, tenebrous, unclear, unfathomable, uninformative, vague, veiled |
| Notes: | cryptic coloration helps conceal an animal; phaneric coloration makes an animal stand out |
| Antonyms: | clear, obvious, plain, seen, straightforward |
| Main Entry: | difficult |
| Part of Speech: | adjective |
| Definition: | complicated; hard to comprehend |
| Synonyms: | abstract, abstruse, baffling, bewildering, complex, confounding, confusing, dark, deep, delicate, enigmatic, enigmatical, entangled, esoteric, formidable, hard to explain, hard to solve, hidden, inexplicable, intricate, involved, knotty, labyrinthine, loose, meandering, mysterious, mystical, mystifying, nice, obscure, obstinate, paradoxical, perplexing, problematical, profound, puzzling, rambling, subtle, tangled, thorny, ticklish, troublesome, unclear, unfathomable, unintelligible, vexing |
| Antonyms: | easy, simple, straightforward, uncomplicated |
| Main Entry: | dim |
| Part of Speech: | adjective |
| Definition: | darkish |
| Synonyms: | blah, bleary, blurred, caliginous, cloudy, dark, dingy, dreary, dull, dusk, dusky, faded, faint, flat, fuzzy, gloomy, gray, ill-defined, indistinct, lackluster, lightless, mat, monotone, monotonous, murky, muted, obscured, opaque, overcast, pale, poorly lit, shadowy, sullied, tarnished, tenebrous, unclear, unilluminated, vague, weak |
| Antonyms: | bright, brilliant, clear, distinct, light |
| Main Entry: | dubious |
| Part of Speech: | adjective |
| Definition: | doubtful |
| Synonyms: | arguable, chancy, debatable, diffident, disputable, dubitable, equivocal, far-fetched, fishy, fly-by-night, hesitant, iffy, improbable, indecisive, moot, mootable, open, perplexed, problematic, questionable, reluctant, shady, skeptical, suspect, suspicious, touch and go, trustless, unassured, uncertain, unclear, unconvinced, undecided, undependable, unlikely, unreliable, unsure, untrustworthy, untrusty, wavering |
| Notes: | a person is capable of doubting, whereas a thing is dubitable; dubious, unlike doubtful, carries the connotation of suspicion |
| Antonyms: | certain, definite, doubtless, positive, reliable, sure, trustworthy, trusty, undoubtful |
| Main Entry: | equivocal |
| Part of Speech: | adjective |
| Definition: | doubtful, uncertain |
| Synonyms: | ambiguous, ambivalent, amphibological, borderline, clear as mud, clouded, disreputable, dubious, evasive, fishy, fuzzy*, hazy*, indefinite, indeterminate, indistinct, misleading, muddled, muzzy, oblique, obscure, open, problematic, puzzling, questionable, suspect, suspicious, tenebrous, unclear, undecided, unexplicit, unintelligible, vague, with mixed feelings |
| Notes: | ambiguous is vague by accident or intent; equivocal is vague by intent |
| Antonyms: | certain, clear, definite, determined, obvious, plain, sure, unequivocal, unquestionable |
* = informal/non-formal usage
| Main Entry: | evasive |
| Part of Speech: | adjective |
| Definition: | deceitful, tricky |
| Synonyms: | ambiguous, cagey, casuistic, casuistical, cunning, deceptive, devious, dissembling, elusive, elusory, equivocating, false, fugitive, greasy, indirect, intangible, lying, misleading, oblique, prevaricating, shifty, shuffling, slippery, sly, sophistical, stonewalling, unclear, vague |
| Notes: | elusive is used when what is being avoided is physical capture or apprehension, whereas evasive is used when what is being avoided is direct or relevant response to a verbal challenge |
| Antonyms: | direct, forthright, honest, ready, straight, straightforward |
Roget's 21st Century Thesaurus, Third Edition
Copyright © 2013 by the Philip Lief Group.
Cite This Source
Copyright © 2013 by the Philip Lief Group.
Cite This Source
Copyright © 2013 Dictionary.com, LLC. All rights reserved.
