penumbral

adjective

as in darkened

Related Words

Relevance

Dissimilar Words

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 penumbral The eclipse will be penumbral, and may be difficult to notice. — Bebe Hodges, Cincinnati Enquirer, 27 Aug. 2026 The outer penumbral cone casts a soft, wide shadow, while the inner umbra reveals the distinct curve of Earth's silhouette. — Anthony Wood, Space.com, 24 Aug. 2026 First, the moon enters the faint outer shadow of the Earth, or the penumbra, where dimming is subtle; this is the penumbral eclipse. — Stefanie Waldek, Condé Nast Traveler, 2 Mar. 2026 The penumbral shadow is the outer, lighter portion, which only partially blocks sunlight. — Ryan Brennan, Charlotte Observer, 19 Feb. 2026 The penumbral shadow is the outer, lighter shadow where only a partial blocking of sunlight occurs. — Ryan Brennan, Miami Herald, 19 Feb. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for penumbral
  1. darkened
  2. dusky
  3. moonless
  4. obscured
  5. darkish
  6. darkling
  7. obscure
  8. pitch-dark
Adjective
  • Around them stand darkened houses, and uncollected trash piles up on the street.
    — Will Freeman, Foreign Affairs, 17 Sep. 2026
  • This trend has been pretty pervasive among designer bags recently, with shoppers buying new Prada and Chanel bags with darkened leather to give them a used look, or sourcing vintage Celine bags with obvious signs of wear.
    — Irene Richardson, InStyle, 2 July 2026
Definition of darkened
Adjective
  • Pittol’s arepas feature a crisp, mottled surface and a dusky plum hue.
    — Jenn Harris, Los Angeles Times, 15 Oct. 2026
  • Rooms The 149 guestrooms and 37 suites come alive in interiors inspired by ocean waves and the dusky skies of the Hollywood Hills, so the palette is moody, the finishes are polished, but nothing whispers.
    — Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 7 Oct. 2026
Definition of dusky
Adjective
  • Just hours after the eclipse ends, the annual Perseid meteor shower reaches its peak beneath almost perfectly moonless skies.
    — Jamie Carter, Forbes.com, 11 Aug. 2026
  • Then, just hours later, the Perseid meteor shower will peak beneath perfectly moonless skies.
    — Jamie Carter, Space.com, 17 July 2026
Definition of moonless
Adjective
  • The face of one subject is somewhat obscured, turned away from the camera.
    — Hanif Abdurraqib, New Yorker, 17 Oct. 2026
  • Each of the 24 service members is seen in obscured profile, their voices modified to make identification impossible.
    — Jay Weissberg, Variety, 10 Sep. 2026
Definition of obscured
Adjective
  • Photos of Trump at this year’s World Economic Forum in Switzerland show an even gnarlier darkish bruise on his left hand.
    — Victor Tangermann, Futurism, 22 Jan. 2026
Definition of darkish
Adjective
  • Its 19th-century spire lit up like a matchstick against the darkling sky, its tip cracking and plunging through the ceiling.
    — Michael Kimmelman, New York Times, 6 Dec. 2024
Definition of darkling
Adjective
  • But Sung, Bennett and Miller stayed his order, finding that the California deployment could go forward under an obscure and virtually untested subsection of the law.
    — Sonja Sharp, Los Angeles Times, 23 Oct. 2026
  • The area sits within the Lake Superior clay plain, where the surrounding soil is largely composed of clay, which can make the water murky and obscure objects beneath the surface.
    — Andrea Margolis, FOXNews.com, 23 Oct. 2026
Definition of obscure
Adjective
  • Three weeks before filming was to commence on Bad Lieutenant, Abel Ferrara‘s pitch-dark 1992 crime masterpiece, the director had a problem.
    — Seth Abramovitch, HollywoodReporter, 14 Oct. 2026
  • The music is quiet but powerful, blending pitch-dark tones and sunny melodies in ways that can recall Elliott Smith, Joanna Newsom, and Animal Collective, among other left-field heroes.
    — Simon Vozick-Levinson, Rolling Stone, 17 July 2026
Definition of pitch-dark

Browse Nearby Words

penumbrae
penumbral
penurious
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Penumbral.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/penumbral. Accessed 29 Oct. 2026.

Copy Citation
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of shindig

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

How to Use 'Who' vs. 'Whom'

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

'Affect' vs. 'Effect'

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World

Why do we 'bury the lede?'

'Za' and 9 Other Words to Help You Win at SCRABBLE
See More

Popular

See More

How to Use 'Who' vs. 'Whom'

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
different halloween monsters in silhouette
A Monstrous Vocab Quiz Words That Go Bump in the Night
See All