OBSCENE Synonyms: 224 Similar and Opposite Words

Q: How is the word 'obscene' different from other adjectives like it?

Some common synonyms of obscene are coarse , gross , ribald , and vulgar . While all these words mean "offensive to good taste or morals," obscene applies to anything strongly repulsive to the sense of decency and propriety especially in sexual matters. // obscene language not allowed on the air

Q: When might 'coarse' be a better fit than 'obscene'?

While the synonyms coarse and obscene are close in meaning, coarse implies roughness, rudeness, or crudeness of spirit, behavior, or language. // found the coarse humor of coworkers offensive

Q: When is 'gross' a more appropriate choice than 'obscene'?

The words gross and obscene can be used in similar contexts, but gross implies extreme coarseness and insensitiveness. // gross eating habits

Q: When would 'ribald' be a good substitute for 'obscene'?

The words ribald and obscene are synonyms, but do differ in nuance. Specifically, ribald applies to what is amusingly or picturesquely vulgar or irreverent or mildly indecent. // entertained the campers with ribald folk songs

Q: In what contexts can 'vulgar' take the place of 'obscene'?

The synonyms vulgar and obscene are sometimes interchangeable, but vulgar often implies boorishness or ill-breeding. // a loud vulgar belch

obscene

adjective

äb-ˈsēn

Definition of obscene

as in pornographic

depicting or referring to sexual matters in a way that is unacceptable in polite society obscene gestures are totally inappropriate in the workplace

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in disgusting

causing intense displeasure, disgust, or resentment that ugly new store is really an obscene bit of architecture

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Synonym Chooser

How is the word obscene different from other adjectives like it?

Some common synonyms of obscene are coarse, gross, ribald, and vulgar. While all these words mean "offensive to good taste or morals," obscene applies to anything strongly repulsive to the sense of decency and propriety especially in sexual matters.

obscene language not allowed on the air

When might coarse be a better fit than obscene?

While the synonyms coarse and obscene are close in meaning, coarse implies roughness, rudeness, or crudeness of spirit, behavior, or language.

found the coarse humor of coworkers offensive

When is gross a more appropriate choice than obscene?

The words gross and obscene can be used in similar contexts, but gross implies extreme coarseness and insensitiveness.

gross eating habits

When would ribald be a good substitute for obscene?

The words ribald and obscene are synonyms, but do differ in nuance. Specifically, ribald applies to what is amusingly or picturesquely vulgar or irreverent or mildly indecent.

entertained the campers with ribald folk songs

In what contexts can vulgar take the place of obscene?

The synonyms vulgar and obscene are sometimes interchangeable, but vulgar often implies boorishness or ill-breeding.

a loud vulgar belch

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 obscene Created under O’Hare’s leadership, the decorum policy prohibits personal attacks, impertinent, profane, obscene, or slanderous remarks as well as threatening, disruptive or unruly behavior. — Rachel Royster, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 22 Sep. 2026 The Georgia Bulldog logo has showed up for years on hats, shirts and pennants, but the state Board of Regents has decided that the appearance of the familiar canine on toilet seats and obscene posters is going too far. — Aj Willingham, AJC.com, 16 Sep. 2026 He was booked into Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center on charges of offenses against students by authority figures, distributing obscene material to minors and lewd and lascivious conduct on a child under 16 years old. — David Goodhue, Miami Herald, 14 Sep. 2026 Few experiences are as universal as paying an obscene amount of money for food and drinks at a sporting event. — Matt Reigle Outkick, FOXNews.com, 9 Sep. 2026 See All Example Sentences for obscene

Recent Examples of Synonyms for obscene

Adjective

On the day of the $50 million demand, a WeChat chat on one of her phones shows pornographic images arriving and being sent back with Victim-1’s face grafted on, the complaint says.

— Catherina Gioino, Fortune, 16 Oct. 2026
The filing follows a separate legal battle launched by Meloni in 2024 against a man accused of creating and posting deepfake pornographic images using her likeness.

— ABC News, ABC News, 5 Oct. 2026

Definition of pornographic

Adjective

That’s likely to inspire either affection or immediate exhaustion, depending on your fondness for the infamously disgusting performance group.

— Alison Foreman, IndieWire, 8 Oct. 2026
People tend to think of waste as trash, sewage, slag, manure and other seemingly useless or disgusting substances.

— Edward D. Melillo, The Conversation, 30 Sep. 2026

Definition of disgusting

Adjective

Continue reading … SOUR NOTE — Hayley Williams unleashes vulgar insult at DHS after agency defends ICE officers.

— , FOXNews.com, 12 Oct. 2026
This has made some machine translations comically inaccurate, sometimes turning innocuous words into vulgar references in English.

— Mohammed Sergie, semafor.com, 8 Oct. 2026

Definition of vulgar

Adjective

My right pants leg was gone and among the smaller cuts an ugly gash puckered at me from the calf.

— Gerald R. Hunter, Outdoor Life, 15 Oct. 2026
The first attempts at a foldable smartphone in the 2010s from other companies tended to be fragile and not all that useful, with a big, ugly crease in the center interrupting the experience.

— Andrew R. Chow, Time, 15 Oct. 2026

Definition of ugly

Adjective

Shohei Ohtani emerged from the visiting dugout at American Family Field with a bat in his hand, and the mass of media members scattered in foul territory up the third-base line shifted his way, pulled by the magnetic force that is Ohtani’s stardom.

— Maddie Lee, Los Angeles Times, 14 Oct. 2026
Stewart attempted a pickoff throw that went off the glove of first baseman Freddie Freeman and into foul territory for an error, advancing Hamilton to second.

— CBS News, CBS News, 13 Oct. 2026

Definition of foul

Adjective

Jake Bauers has been awful for most of his career, but graduated in 2018 as a top-50 prospect.

— Ian Miller OutKick, FOXNews.com, 18 Oct. 2026
Trailing 12-0 after its awful start, BC scored the next 14 points, jumping in front on McKenzie’s 11-yard score to Javarius Green.

— ABC News, ABC News, 17 Oct. 2026

Definition of awful

Adjective

The polls still show a close-range contest, but in the increasingly nasty ad war, the spending suggests a far more lopsided fight.

— Philip Elliott, Time, 19 Oct. 2026
Officers then cuffed the youngster as he was loaded into an ambulance and hospitalized for a fractured femur and a nasty bruise on his head, according to the lawsuit, which was filed by the teen’s dad, Mahmoud Saleh, in Brooklyn Federal Court.

— John Annese, New York Daily News, 18 Oct. 2026

Definition of nasty

Adjective

There’s a big data center that just came to my community not long ago and their community engagement was horrible, absolutely horrible.

— Dustin DeSoto, Vox, 16 Oct. 2026
After the third day of squirting an experimental drug up his nose, Dylan Meetze felt horrible.

— Amy Maxmen, Miami Herald, 15 Oct. 2026

Definition of horrible

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oboists

obscene

obscenely

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“Obscene.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/obscene. Accessed 20 Oct. 2026.

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Synonyms of obscene

adjective

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