# obscurity

> English word · Noun · IPA /əbˈskjʊəɹɪti/ · frequency rank #22,454

## Definitions
1. Darkness; the absence of light.
2. The state of being unknown; a thing that is unknown.
3. The quality of being difficult to understand; a thing that is difficult to understand.

## Etymology
From Middle English obscurite, obscuryte, from Middle French obscurité and its etymon Latin obscūritās. By surface analysis, obscure + -ity.

## Easily confused with
- **obscenity** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/obscenity-vs-obscurity)

## Common misspellings (14)
`boscurity`, `obbscurity`, `obcsurity`, `obsccurity`, `obscruity`, `obscuirty`, `obscuritty`, `obscurityy`, `obscuriyt`, `obscurrity`, `obscurtiy`, `obsscurity`, `obsucrity`, `osbcurity`

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/word/obscurity