ISEE/SSAT Vocabulary BuilderWordsOobtuseness
ISEE/SSAThard
obtuseness
Meaning: slowness to understand or notice what should be clear
obtuseness in a sentence
How obtuseness is used in real sentences:
His obtuseness prevented him from recognizing the warning in her careful words.
Despite repeated hints, his obtuseness kept him from realizing that the guests wanted to leave.
“Yet his obtuseness became apparent when he repeatedly ignored a clear pattern: errors increased whenever the spacecraft entered afternoon sunlight.”
— from the passage The Drift Above
Synonyms for obtuseness
Other words for obtuseness — dullness, stupidity and insensitivity — carry the same meaning.
- dullness
- stupidity
- insensitivity
Antonyms of obtuseness
Words that mean the opposite of obtuseness:
- insight
- perceptiveness
- acuity
Where it comes from
From Latin obtusus, meaning 'blunt' or 'dull.'
Memory hook
OBTUSE-NESS is the state of being mentally dull or slow to understand.
Practice obtuseness in the app