Nov 4, 2011 · dull, blunt, obtuse mean not sharp, keen, or acute. dull suggests a lack or loss of keenness, zest, or pungency.

Obtuse definition: not quick or alert in perception, feeling, or intellect; not sensitive or observant; dull.. See examples of OBTUSE used in a sentence.

He has been obtuse, difficult, totally irrational and unreasonable to the detriment of the whole of his country.

Someone who is obtuse has difficulty understanding things, or makes no effort to understand them.

The adjective obtuse literally means "rounded" or "blunt," but when it's used for a person, it means "not quick or alert in perception" — in other words, not the sharpest tool in the shed.

1. not quick or alert in perception, feeling, or intellect; insensitive; dull. 2. not sharp, acute, or pointed; blunt. 3. (of a leaf, petal, etc.) rounded at the extremity. 4. indistinctly felt or perceived, …

Definition of obtuse adjective in Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary. Meaning, pronunciation, picture, example sentences, grammar, usage notes, synonyms and more.

Oct 8, 2025 · obtuse (comparative obtuser or more obtuse, superlative obtusest or most obtuse) (now chiefly botany, zoology) Blunt; not sharp, pointed, or acute in form. quotations

There are four meanings listed in OED's entry for the adjective obtuse, one of which is labelled obsolete. See ‘Meaning & use’ for definitions, usage, and quotation evidence.

The words blunt and dull are common synonyms of obtuse. While all three words mean "not sharp, keen, or acute," obtuse implies such bluntness as makes one insensitive in perception …