obscurely

[ uhb-skyoor-lee ]

adverb

1. in a way that is not expressed clearly or plainly; ambiguously or vaguely:

   This question, although obscurely phrased, is one of the easiest interview questions to answer if you approach it properly.

2. in a way that is hard to discern or identify, or is not clear to the understanding:

   The end of the story made me wonder if Lila had only imagined the whole thing—a reading that felt obscurely troubling to me.

3. in a way that is not prominent or famous or that garners little public attention or importance:

   In the 17th century, the game of cricket grew up obscurely and locally as a game of the common people.

4. in a place that is out of the way and not easy to find or notice:

   The church is small and stands to one side of the village, rather obscurely.

   We trekked to an obscurely located arch of rock, hidden in a remote pocket of northern Arizona.

5. in a dim or murky way; faintly:

   In Poe’s poem, the “sad Soul” doomed to live in Dream-Land sees everything through “darkened glasses,” erroneously and obscurely.

Other Words From

• sub·ob·scure·ly adverb
• un·ob·scure·ly adverb

Word History and Origins

Origin of obscurely¹

obscure ( def ) + -ly

Example Sentences

It’s a clever update, not least because the men’s masochistic undertaking — to forego pleasure for the sake of an obscurely defined idea of personal advancement — prefigures the self-optimization fetish that today’s social media gurus are hustling.

From New York Times

The competitive primaries of crypto-supporting Democratic Maryland Senate candidates David Trone and Angela Ashbrook have seen a large influx of money from obscurely named crypto PACs like Defend American Jobs.

From Slate

First came Joel Thompson’s “To See the Sky,” obscurely subtitled “an exegesis for orchestra.”

From New York Times

"The tradition of fruitcakes dates back centuries," says Dean Harper, "though their association with Christmas only became widespread in the Middle Ages. Obscurely enough, England passed some laws that prohibited the use of cake outside of holidays, leading many to treat it as a celebratory treat. On top of that, England saw an emerging tradition of eating the Twelfth Night cake to commemorate the end of the Christmas season. Naturally, this transitioned to the USA during the period of colonialization."

From Salon

The viral meme infiltrating our fraught politics began obscurely on a New Zealand radio show on which the hosts help rationalize absurd, illogical purchases their listeners share with them.

From Salon