opaque
Cannot see through
Opaque describes something that blocks light from passing through, making it impossible to see what's behind it.
This contrasts with transparent (fully see-through) and translucent (allowing some light but obscuring details).
The word extends naturally to anything difficult to understand or penetrate: The legal language was opaque to most readers.
Opaque prose is dense and unclear; an opaque bureaucracy resists scrutiny.
In technical contexts, opacity can refer to how much radiation or other energy a material absorbs.
Not easily understood
- confusingCausing mental uncertainty
- impenetrableImpossible to pass through
- unintelligibleImpossible to understand
- abstruseDifficult to comprehend
arcane · esoteric · inscrutable · cryptic · dense · baffling · perplexing · bewildering
Kept out of sight
- concealedMade invisible deliberately
- veiledConcealed or obscured
- undisclosedNot made known
- covertIntentionally concealed
clandestine · mysterious · shrouded · inscrutable · unreadable · guarded · evasive · impenetrable
unclear
Not easily understood
- confusingCausing mental uncertainty
- impenetrableImpossible to pass through
- unintelligibleImpossible to understand
abstruse · arcane · esoteric · inscrutable · cryptic · dense · baffling · perplexing · bewildering · unfathomable
hidden
Kept out of sight
- concealedMade invisible deliberately
- veiledConcealed or obscured
- undisclosedNot made known
covert · clandestine · mysterious · shrouded · inscrutable · unreadable · guarded · evasive · impenetrable · unforthcoming
frosted
Covered with icy film
tinted · matte · translucent · polarized · coated · leaded · laminated · glazed · filmy · fogged
- art termspainting, sculpture, drawing, portrait, landscape
- bacterial coloniescolony, petri dish, circular, convex, raised
- Marblesshooter, shooters, taw, cat's eye, steelies
- mineral propertiesadamantine, vitreous, metallic, pearly, resinous
- beauty termsmatte, dewy, hydrating, moisturizing, smoothing
- container traitsairtight, leakproof, sealed, watertight, stackable
opaquetransparent
Allowing light through
clear · see-through · translucent · diaphanous · pellucid
opaqueclear
Without obstruction or fog
lucid · transparent · comprehensible · plain · understandable
opaquetransparent
Allowing light through
open · accountable · visible · accessible · clear
- opaque glassTranslucent but not transparent
- opaque tightsLeg coverings blocking visibility