abstruse

adjective

əb-ˈstrüs How to pronounce abstruse (audio)
Definition of abstrusenext
as in esoteric
difficult for one of ordinary knowledge or intelligence to understand you're not the only one who finds Einstein's theory of relativity abstruse

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of abstruse So his analysis may wobble here and there on the abstruse particulars of, say, inference costs. — Tommy Craggs, Wired News, 27 Oct. 2025 But the turn feels less absurd than abstruse, sudden even, given the film’s prior resistance to laugh at itself. — Ryan Lattanzio, IndieWire, 3 Sep. 2025 Also, his estimate arose from abstruse economic formulas and lots of magic asterisks. — Los Angeles Times, 8 July 2025 Into Breaking Its Own Rules To emphasize the importance of math, Winkler displayed a handful of abstruse equations. — Neil J. Rubenking, PC Magazine, 2 May 2025 See All Example Sentences for abstruse
Recent Examples of Synonyms for abstruse
  1. esoteric
  2. profound
Adjective
  • That's an important, if esoteric, distinction, as Asus already claimed the first RGB OLED gaming monitor (the ROG Swift PG34WCDN), and LG called dibs on the world’s first 39-inch 5K2K OLED gaming monitor with the GX9.
    — Zackery Cuevas, PC Magazine, 27 Aug. 2026
  • Even though Truell was then chasing an esoteric idea around AI for CAD, Tisch and the partners at BoxGroup listened.
    — Allie Garfinkle, Fortune, 26 Aug. 2026
Definition of esoteric
Adjective
  • The authors argue that this has profound implications for composite materials in general.
    — Jacek Krywko, ArsTechnica, 31 Aug. 2026
  • Twenty-nine years have passed since then, yet the memory of the princess—an empathetic woman who defied convention, vulnerable yet rebellious, and imbued with a profound humanity—remains vivid and very much alive in the eyes of the entire world.
    — Laura Scafati, Vanity Fair, 31 Aug. 2026
Definition of profound

Browse Nearby Words

abstracts
abstruse
abstruseness
See all Nearby Words

Podcast

Cite this Entry

“Abstruse.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/abstruse. Accessed 5 Sep. 2026.

Copy Citation
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

A List of Most Commonly Confused Words

Why do we use apostrophes to show possession?

Is it 'nerve-racking' or 'nerve-wracking'?

What's the difference between 'fascism' and 'socialism'?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

The Longest Long Words List

Stay Woke

Ye Olde Nincompoop: Old-Fashioned Words for 'Stupid'

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

The Words of the Week - Sept. 4
See More

Popular

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

The Longest Long Words List

Stay Woke
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
anagrams on a chalk board
Word Builder Quiz Vol. 2 Pick the letter that when added to a word will ma...
See All