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obscene

obscene

27 5.7
Very shocking and upsetting to many people because it breaks moral rules
  • adjective
  • /əbˈsiːn/
  • Offensive
: repugnante
  • Police surveillance, obscene phone calls, death threats, shunning by friends and neighbors.
  • obscene language
  • obscene gestures

I live in a moral, narcissistic, obscene life, and I need God.

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Examples

  • It's obscene, all the violence, all the lunacy.

  • But they continue to see these absurd, obscene images of her.

  • I thought it was an obscene phone call.

  • Well, there I was in the middle of this obscene phone call, and I thought of you.

  • In so many cases, it's obscene what they're doing.

  • Senator Baynard has been getting obscene phone calls.

  • Specifically, the Court has found that which is obscene to be undeserving of First Amendment protection.

    Academic text (2002)
  • There are family solutions to family problems, but this, this is appalling and obscene; it's immoral.

    Fiction book (1994)
  • Reporter: What you're about to hear is going to shock you because it's vulgar and obscene.

  • The manager considered the magazine article obscene and decided to take legal action against it.

Synonyms

disgusting
vsobscene
538 1.3

Causing a strong feeling of dislike or making you feel sick

is more focused on deep moral offence rather than mere revulsion
gross
vsobscene
  • Informal
333 2.3

Very unpleasant and making you feel sick or disgusted

adds extreme moral shock beyond plain unpleasantness
outrageous
vsobscene
224 4.2

Shocking and very wrong in a way that upsets people

is similar but stresses deep moral repugnance more
vile
vsobscene
131 5.0

Very bad and morally wrong

is stronger in causing deep shock or moral outrage
appalling
vsobscene
84 5.6

Causing shock and strong disgust because it is very bad

is more narrowly about deep moral offensiveness and repugnance
foul
vsobscene
  • NSFW
80 4.7

Containing rude or offensive language

is more about extreme moral shock than general indecency
egregious
vsobscene
58 8.9

Very bad and obvious in a way that shocks people

adds the moral repugnance element beyond being merely blatant
repulsive
vsobscene
54 5.5

Causing strong dislike or disgust, like a very bad smell

is more about serious shock to moral or social standards
crude
vsobscene
  • Offensive
52 5.1

Being rude and offensive, often about sex

is harsher, causing deep shock and moral repugnance
vulgar
vsobscene
  • Offensive
52 6.5

Being rude and indecent in words or behaviour

is harsher, causing deeper moral shock beyond mere tastelessness
horrid
vsobscene
47 4.1

A very unpleasant thing that shocks or disgusts you

focuses more specifically on offending moral or social norms
disgraceful
vsobscene
44 3.0

Very bad or shocking behaviour that makes people lose respect

is more about deep moral offensiveness than public shame
filthy
vsobscene
  • Offensive
44 4.7

Words or jokes that are rude and about sex

is broader, not limited to sexual indecency but deep moral offense
indecent
vsobscene
  • NSFW
40 6.7

Not acceptable in public because it is offensive or sexual

is broader, covering any deeply shocking moral offence not only sexual
repugnant
vsobscene
35 7.8

Very unpleasant and morally wrong to most people

adds the idea of shocking or scandalous moral violation
deplorable
vsobscene
34 6.8

Very bad and unacceptable, deserving strong criticism

focuses more on deep moral outrage rather than general badness
objectionable
vsobscene
29 6.7

Causing people to feel offended or want to protest

is stronger, provoking deep shock and moral disgust
abominable
vsobscene
26 7.2

Very bad or morally wrong so people strongly dislike it

emphasizes shock and violation of social sensibilities
abhorrent
vsobscene
21 7.7

Causing strong dislike or disgust because people see it as morally wrong

is more about deep shock at accepted moral standards
raunchy
vsobscene
  • Offensive
17 8.6

Content about sex that is rude and shocking

covers wider moral repugnance beyond sexual explicitness
detestable
vsobscene
9 6.5

Very unpleasant and causing people to feel strong dislike or hate

focuses more on shocking or deeply offensive content
offensive
vsobscene
3 5.3

Having a bad smell or taste that bothers you

is stronger, causing deep moral shock and severe disgust
highly offensive
vsobscene
  • Offensive
3 6.6

Very rude and likely to make people feel angry or hurt

focuses more on deeply shocking or morally repugnant content
disgustful
vsobscene
1 6.7

Causing a strong feeling of dislike or making people feel sick

stresses deeper shock to shared moral sensibilities

Antonyms

392 2.5

Good enough for a particular use or standard

How Obscene

revolting
31 4.9
obscene
  • Offensive
27 5.7
outrageous
54 4.2
offensive
  • Offensive
276 4.0
distasteful
34 4.6

Surface Forms

obscene positive
obscener comparative
obscenest superlative

Morphology

obscene = scene (opaque) = ob + scene

Though the surface segmentation is 'ob-' + 'scene', the sense 'extremely offensive or shocking' is not predictable from 'scene' alone.

Etymology

Obscene comes from Latin obscenus, meaning 'detestable' or 'shocking'. So when we call words or actions obscene we mean they are extremely offensive or morally wrong, because the word once named things people found sickening.