The ancient manuscript's obscure handwriting baffled scholars, who spent years deciphering its faded symbols.
这份古代手稿晦涩的笔迹令学者们困惑，他们花了数年时间解读其褪色的符号。
Theater historian Boris Kaminski, who has studied similar modern-dress productions elsewhere, cautions that updating a play's setting can sometimes obscure historical context that is essential to understanding certain plot points and character motivations.
From a Cross-Text Connections question · Craft and Structure
Which choice best defines “obscure”?
B — Not clear, hard to understand. “obscure” means not clear, hard to understand.
Which word means “not clear, hard to understand”?
D — obscure. “obscure” means not clear, hard to understand.
obscure — not clear, hard to understand. In Chinese: 模糊的，晦涩的.
obscure is pronounced /əbˈskjʊr/.
The ancient manuscript's obscure handwriting baffled scholars, who spent years deciphering its faded symbols. (这份古代手稿晦涩的笔迹令学者们困惑，他们花了数年时间解读其褪色的符号。)
vague, ambiguous, unclear — all close in meaning to obscure (not clear, hard to understand).
clear, obvious — each the opposite of obscure (not clear, hard to understand).
Yes. obscure is on the SAT Prep Easy list — mid-frequency academic words that do get tested. The Digital SAT does not test vocabulary in isolation; words like this one are tested through Words in Context questions, where you choose the word that completes a passage most logically and precisely.
obscure(something unclear or hard to understand)