camera obscura

noun

cam·​era ob·​scu·​ra ˈkam-rə-əb-ˈskyu̇r-ə How to pronounce camera obscura (audio)
ˈka-mə-rə-
: a darkened enclosure having an aperture usually provided with a lens through which light from external objects enters to form an image of the objects on the opposite surface

Examples of camera obscura in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
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.
That means that Kepler's famed schematic drawing diagrammed in his book conflicts with both camera obscura images and the astronomer's original text. Jennifer Ouellette, Ars Technica, 31 July 2024 The earliest datable sunspot drawings based on Kepler's solar observations with camera obscura in May 1607. Jennifer Ouellette, Ars Technica, 31 July 2024 Nicolaus Copernicus observed this phenomenon through a camera obscura, which, along with other observations, helped explain that the sun, not the Earth, was at the center of our planetary system. Geraldine Castro, WIRED, 6 Apr. 2024 Mattel courts toy-shopping parents with sustainable products To a child, a box can be a doll’s house or a rocket ship, a camera obscura or a magic carpet sailing down the concrete slides in Golden Gate Park. Sonja Sharp, Los Angeles Times, 3 Aug. 2023 Williams built a frame over the hole where the camera obscura had been, providing a spot for Fortuna’s pedestal. Sam Whiting, San Francisco Chronicle, 6 Mar. 2023 At 18, Weber built a camera obscura, or pinhole camera, at home to test whether Vermeer might have used one. Nick Glass, CNN, 9 Feb. 2023 Long story short, this was the work that really established the idea that sight relies on rays of light stretching from objects to the eye, as well as introducing the camera obscura and discussing the physical mechanism of sight. Sean Carroll, Discover Magazine, 8 Jan. 2011 The museum’s researchers, however, said the brushstrokes contained no evidence of a link to the camera obscura, a type of pinhole camera. Zachary Small, New York Times, 7 Oct. 2022

Word History

Etymology

New Latin, literally, dark chamber

First Known Use

1716, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of camera obscura was in 1716

Dictionary Entries Near camera obscura

Cite this Entry

“Camera obscura.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/camera%20obscura. Accessed 23 Nov. 2024.

More from Merriam-Webster on camera obscura

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!