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Glite Dictionary
😕 Slowness to understand 🔪 Bluntness
obtuseness

obtuseness

7.5
Lack of a sharp edge or point on an object
  • noun
  • /əbˈtjuːs.nəs/
translation icon : embotamiento
  • The obtuseness of the blunt pencil frustrated her as she tried to write clearly.

Examples

  • The knife had an obtuseness that made it difficult to cut through soft fruits.

  • Sam presented his details with the dull obtuseness that passed for communication in the army and then, adjusting his night bag, turned from the desk.

    Fiction book (1997)

  • The conceptualization, the whole abstraction, The obtuseness of this production, to me, Was what was interesting.

    Waiting for Guffman (1996)

  • His deliberate obtuseness in the conversation left everyone confused about his true intentions.

Synonyms

bluntness
vsobtuseness
4.3

A lack of a sharp edge or point that makes cutting hard

has identical meaning but is called by a different label
unpointedness
vsobtuseness
9.9

A thing with a dull, rounded, or missing tip

emphasizes a general lack of sharp edge rather than tip shape
dullness
vsobtuseness
2.3

A blade that is not sharp

is more specific about absence of a sharp edge or point

Antonyms

sharpness
1 3.0

A very thin edge or point that cuts things easily

acuteness
6.0

A point or edge that is very sharp

How Pointed

keenness
4.6
sharpness
1 3.0
obtuseness
7.5
roundness
4 2.6

Surface Forms

obtuseness singular
obtusenesses plural

Morphology

obtuseness = obtuse (transparent) = obtuse + ness

Standard noun formation from the adjective 'obtuse' meaning 'not sharp' yields the expected quality 'bluntness'.

Etymology

Obtuseness comes from the Latin obtusus, which means 'blunt' or 'dull', so it originally described an edge or tool that is not sharp — that's why we use it for a pencil or knife that cannot cut cleanly.