obscure (English)
Where does "obscure" come from?
The English adjective 'obscure' traces its lineage back to Middle English 'obscure'[1]. This traveled through Old French 'obscur'[1] from the Latin 'obscūrus', which meant 'dark, dusky, indistinct'[1]. Latin formed this word from the prefix 'ob-' combined with '*scūrus'[1], meaning 'dark'[2]. Going further back, this root stems from Proto-Italic '*skoiros', which ultimately derives from the Proto-Indo-European root '*(s)ḱeh₃-'[1].
Open questions
- The Proto-Indo-European root is possibly connected to another form meaning to shine or shimmer. [3]
Full etymology tree
- obscure (English), 'Dark, faint or indistinct.'
- borrowed obscure (Middle English)
- borrowed obscur (Old French)
- borrowed obscurus (Latin), 'dark, dusky, shadowy'
- prefix ob- (Latin), 'towards; against'
- affix *scūrus (Latin)
- derived *skoiros (Proto-Italic)
- derived *(s)ḱeh₃i- (Proto-Indo-European)
- derived *(s)ḱeh₃- (Proto-Indo-European), 'darkness, shadow'
- derived *(s)ḱeh₁y- (Proto-Indo-European), 'to shine, shimmer'
- derived *(s)ḱeh₃- (Proto-Indo-European), 'darkness, shadow'
- derived *(s)ḱeh₃i- (Proto-Indo-European)
- derived *skoiros (Proto-Italic)
- borrowed obscurus (Latin), 'dark, dusky, shadowy'
- borrowed obscur (Old French)
- borrowed obscure (Middle English)
Ancestors
- *(s)ḱeh₃- (Proto-Indo-European)
- obscurus (Latin)
- ob- (Latin)
Cognates and doublets
- oscuro (English)
Descendants and derived words
- obscurable (English)
- obscure honeyeater (English)
- obscurely (English)
- obscurement (English)
- obscureness (English)
- obscurification (English)
- obscurify (English)
- obscurin (English)
- obscurism (English)
- obscurist (English)
- reobscure (English)
- semiobscure (English)
Related words
Sources
- obscure (English) - Wiktionary
- obscurus (Latin) - Wiktionary
- (s)ḱeh₃- (Proto-Indo-European) - Wiktionary
Updated October 2026
Etymology data from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0 · About Miraris