obscurity
ob·scur·ity/əbˈskjʊɹɪti/noun
obscurity is spelled O-B-S-C-U-R-I-T-Y: 9 letters and 3 syllables (ob·scur·ity). It appears 1.6 times per million words in written English, the 22,362nd most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, obscurity means “Darkness; the absence of light” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of obscurity is obscurities.
How many letters and syllables are in obscurity?
| Letters | 9: O-B-S-C-U-R-I-T-Y |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 3: ob·scur·ity |
| In writing | 1.6 times per million words; the 22,362nd most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
| Rhymes with |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media); rhymes and same-letter words are computed by PlainSpell from its own word list.
How common is obscurity?
Obscurity appears 1.6 times per million words in written English, the 22,362nd most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce obscurity?
- UK /əbˈskjʊəɹɪti/
- UK /əbˈskjɔːɹɪti/
- US /əbˈskjʊɹɪti/
Obscurity has 3 syllables, split ob·scur·ity in writing.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: En-us-obscurity.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
What rhymes with obscurity?
One word on PlainSpell end in the same sounds as obscurity from its last stressed vowel (/ʊɹɪti/):
Computed by PlainSpell from the pronunciations in the English Wiktionary (dump of September 2, 2026): a rhyme shares every sound from the last stressed vowel to the end; ordered by written frequency (wordfreq 3.1).
Forms of obscurity
- obscurities plural
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does obscurity mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
Darkness; the absence of light.
- 2
The state of being unknown; a thing that is unknown.
She was plucked from obscurity to star in a Broadway musical.
- 3
The quality of being difficult to understand; a thing that is difficult to understand.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Obscurity in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | obscurité |
| Portuguese | obscuridade |
| Spanish | oscuridad , obscuridad, obscuración |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does obscurity come from?
From Middle English obscurite, obscuryte, from Middle French obscurité and its etymon Latin obscūritās. By surface analysis, obscure + -ity.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).