obnubilate
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ob·nu·bi·late
(ŏb-no͞o′bə-lāt′, -nyo͞o′-)tr.v. ob·nu·bi·lat·ed, ob·nu·bi·lat·ing, ob·nu·bi·lates
1. To darken or obscure with clouds; becloud: a storm that obnubilated the sky.
2. To cause to be unable to think clearly; confuse: Superstition obnubilated their minds.
3. To make hard to understand or follow; obscure: an important idea that was obnubilated by poor writing.
[Latin obnūbilāre, obnūbilāt- : ob-, against, in the way of; see epi in Indo-European roots + nūbilāre, to become cloudy (from nūbilus, cloudy, from nūbēs, cloud).]
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
obnubilate
(ɒbˈnjuːbɪˌleɪt)vb
(tr) literary to darken or obscure
[C16: ultimately from Latin obnūbilāre to cover with clouds, from nubes cloud]
Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014
obnubilate
Past participle: obnubilated
Gerund: obnubilating
Imperative |
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obnubilate |
obnubilate |
Collins English Verb Tables © HarperCollins Publishers 2011
ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:
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Verb | 1. | obnubilate - make less visible or unclear; "The stars are obscured by the clouds"; "the big elm tree obscures our view of the valley" conceal, hide - prevent from being seen or discovered; "Muslim women hide their faces"; "hide the money" overshadow - cast a shadow upon; "The tall tree overshadowed the house" |
2. | obnubilate - make unclear, indistinct, or blurred; "Her remarks confused the debate"; "Their words obnubilate their intentions" alter, change, modify - cause to change; make different; cause a transformation; "The advent of the automobile may have altered the growth pattern of the city"; "The discussion has changed my thinking about the issue" confuse, confound - mistake one thing for another; "you are confusing me with the other candidate"; "I mistook her for the secretary" muddy - cause to become muddy; "These data would have muddied the prediction" |
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