obtuse

(ŏb-tūs', -tyūs', əb-)
adj., -tus·er, -tus·est.

1. 1. Lacking quickness of perception or intellect.
   2. Characterized by a lack of intelligence or sensitivity: an obtuse remark.
   3. Not distinctly felt: an obtuse pain.
2. 1. Not sharp, pointed, or acute in form; blunt.
   2. Having an obtuse angle: an obtuse triangle.
   3. Botany. Having a blunt or rounded tip: an obtuse leaf.

[Middle English, from Old French, from Latin obtūsus, past participle of obtundere, to blunt. See obtund.]

obtusely ob·tuse'ly adv.
obtuseness ob·tuse'ness n.

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adjective

Lacking in intelligence: blockheaded, dense, doltish, dumb, hebetudinous, stupid, thickheaded, thick-witted. Informal thick. Slang dimwitted, dopey. See ability/inability.

adj

Definition: blunt, not sharp
Antonyms: pointed, sharp

adj

Definition: stupid
Antonyms: astute, bright, clever, intelligent, quick, sharp, smart

Having a blunt or rounded tip.

IN BRIEF: Not quick to understand.

Am an attendant lord, one that will do...Full of high sentence, but a bit obtuse; At times, indeed, almost ridiculous— Almost, at times, the Fool." — T.S. Eliot (1888-1965),British-American poet and critic, from The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock, 1917.

Tutor's tip: An "abstruse" professor may be deep, profound and hard to understand. Unfortunately, some of her students are "obtuse" or dull and slow-witted.

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For a list of words related to obtuse, see:

• Stupid, Ignorant, or Confused
• Dimensions and Directions - obtuse: (adj) designating an angle greater than 90 but less than 180 degrees
• Shapes - obtuse: (adj) being an angle of more than 90 but less than 180 degrees

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See words rhyming with "obtuse."

  See crossword solutions for the clue Obtuse.

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Dansk (Danish)
adj. - sløv, stump, tykhovedet, dum

Nederlands (Dutch)
stompzinnig, bot

Français (French)
adj. - obtus, stupide, (Math) obtus

Deutsch (German)
adj. - stumpf, beschränkt

Ελληνική (Greek)
adj. - αμβλύς (κν. στομωμένος), βραδύνους

Italiano (Italian)
ottuso, stupido

Português (Portuguese)
adj. - obtuso, estúpido

Русский (Russian)
тупой

Español (Spanish)
adj. - obtuso, torpe, tardo en comprender

Svenska (Swedish)
adj. - slö, trög, trögtänkt

中文（简体）(Chinese (Simplified))
钝的, 圆头的, 不尖的

中文（繁體）(Chinese (Traditional))
adj. - 鈍的, 圓頭的, 不尖的

한국어 (Korean)
adj. - 무딘, 둔각의

日本語 (Japanese)
adj. - 鈍い, 鈍角の, 鈍感な

العربيه (Arabic)
‏(صفه) بليد‏

עברית (Hebrew)
adj. - ‮עמום, אטום, קשה-תפיסה, טיפש, קהה‬

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