RockyPanda logo, Vocabs home

Abstruse: meaning, example and synonyms

Abstruseadj. Difficult to understand; obscure and accessible only to specialists.

Flashcard for Abstruse (adjective): difficult to understand; obscure and accessible only to specialists. Example: The lecture on algebraic topology was so abstruse that even the visiting mathematicians exchanged puzzled glances before the speaker had finished his first proof. Synonyms: obscure, esoteric, arcane, recondite. Antonyms: clear, accessible, lucid, simple. Memory tip: ABSTRUSE ~ abstract + obtuse: very hard to grasp. Illustration: puzzled students in sweaters scratching their heads in front of a chalkboard covered with tangled loops and knotted abstract diagrams, with no numbers or letters.

Example

The lecture on algebraic topology was so abstruse that even the visiting mathematicians exchanged puzzled glances before the speaker had finished his first proof.

Part of speech
adjective
Synonyms
obscure, esoteric, arcane, recondite
Antonyms
clear, accessible, lucid, simple
Memory tip
ABSTRUSE ~ abstract + obtuse: very hard to grasp.

Abstruse is in batch 18. Study it with the rest of the batch, then pass the batch quiz to learn it. No account needed; progress is saved on this device.

Take the batch 18 quiz

Check yourself: Abstruse in context

Pick the word that best completes each text.

Question 1

The philosopher's later treatises are so ______ that even specialists disagree about what their central arguments are, and many students give up after a few pages.

Question 2

To make the ______ mathematics of quantum mechanics accessible to high school students, the teacher relied on analogies involving spinning coins and ripples in a pond.

All 400 words in the deck · All batches