Synonyms of abstruse

abstruse

adjective

əb-ˈstrüs 

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

• esoteric
• profound
• recondite
• ambiguous
• arcane
• hermetic
• scholarly
• confusing
• complicated
• deep
• academic
• mystical
• academical
• complex
• hermetical
• erudite
• enigmatic
• mystic
• cryptic
• mysterious
• enigmatical
• inscrutable
• learned
• incomprehensible
• pedantic
• unintelligible
• perplexing
• unfathomable
• uncanny
• impenetrable
• baffling
• puzzling
• unknowable
• unanswerable
• confounding
• darkling
• hard
• orphic
• disorienting
• mystifying
• bewildering

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• superficial
• shallow
• simple
• easy
• straightforward
• intelligible
• understandable
• comprehensible
• obvious
• facile
• apparent
• clear
• plain
• distinct
• evident
• transparent
• lucid
• manifest
• fathomable
• perspicuous
• clear-cut

Examples of abstruse in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Unfortunately, this condition exists because 'social welfare' is inherently an abstruse concept that continues to defy precise definition. —Jon Brodkin, Ars Technica, 21 May 2024

In fanciful and pun-filled narratives shared among one another and alluded to in outward-facing writing, Bourbaki’s collaborators embedded him in an elaborate mathematical-political universe filled with the abstruse terminology and concepts of modern theories. —Michael Barany, JSTOR Daily, 24 Mar. 2021

Such abstruse questions seem far removed from present-day concerns. —Elizabeth Kolbert, The New Yorker, 20 Apr. 2024

The decades-old concept could explain many things, such as where WIMPs come from, but its main job is to solve a more abstruse problem. —Byadrian Cho, science.org, 28 Mar. 2024

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