abstruse

adjective

əb-ˈstrüs How to pronounce abstruse (audio)
Definition of abstrusenext
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

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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 abstruse So his analysis may wobble here and there on the abstruse particulars of, say, inference costs. — Tommy Craggs, Wired News, 27 Oct. 2025 But the turn feels less absurd than abstruse, sudden even, given the film’s prior resistance to laugh at itself. — Ryan Lattanzio, IndieWire, 3 Sep. 2025 Also, his estimate arose from abstruse economic formulas and lots of magic asterisks. — Los Angeles Times, 8 July 2025 Into Breaking Its Own Rules To emphasize the importance of math, Winkler displayed a handful of abstruse equations. — Neil J. Rubenking, PC Magazine, 2 May 2025 See All Example Sentences for abstruse
Recent Examples of Synonyms for abstruse
  1. esoteric
  2. profound
Adjective
  • Solid-state physics in its early days was just an esoteric exercise to satisfy curiosity.
    — Mattanjah de Vries, Chicago Tribune, 28 Oct. 2026
  • Christie’s confidence that the canvas will hit its mark is based on a far more esoteric criterion, as Max Carter, the house’s global chair of twentieth- and twenty-first-century art, told Artnet News.
    — News Desk, Artforum, 26 Oct. 2026
Definition of esoteric
Adjective
  • A student victory would be a profound political shift in ​the Balkan country of some 6 million people, reminiscent of the defeat of Hungary’s Viktor Orban in April.
    — Reuters, NBC news, 25 Oct. 2026
  • The shifts could have profound implications for the more than $5 trillion in assets managed by family offices.
    — Robert Frank, CNBC, 23 Oct. 2026
Definition of profound

Browse Nearby Words

abstracts
abstruse
abstruseness
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Cite this Entry

“Abstruse.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/abstruse. Accessed 28 Oct. 2026.

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