Obscene Meaning
/əbˈsiːn/Definition, CEFR level C1, pronunciation, examples, and quiz.
Listen pronunciation
Definition
adjOffensive to standards of decency or morality.
adjLewd or lustful.
Sentence Examples
One must be respectful when speaking, and not say obscene things.
His obscene remarks will be expunged from the record.
CEFR Practice Quiz
The comedian's ____ jokes, full of crude language, offended many audience members.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
The billboard was removed after several complaints were made about its ____ and offensive content.
Word Origin & History
From Middle French obscene (modern French obscène (“indecent, obscene”)), and from its etymon Latin obscēnus, obscaenus (“inauspicious; ominous; disgusting, filthy; offensive, repulsive; indecent, lewd, obscene”). The further etymology is uncertain, but may be from ob- (prefix meaning ‘towards’) + caenum (“dirt, filth; mire, mud”) (possibly ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *ḱweyn- (“to make dirty, soil; filth; mud”)) or scaevus (“left, on the left side; clumsy; (figurative) unlucky”) (from Proto-Indo-European *skeh₂iwo-). If from caenum, the unexpected extra -s- may be from a variant form of the original PIE root; a similar -s- exists in ex-.
Literary Quotations & Historical Citations
"[...] I did incounter that obſeene and moſt prepoſterous euent that draweth frõ my ſnowhite pen the ebon coloured Incke, which here thou vieweſt, beholdeſt, ſuruayeſt, or ſeeſt. [...] There did I ſee that low ſpirited Swaine, [...] hight Coſtard, (Clow[ne]. O mee) ſorted and conſorted contrary to thy eſtabliſhed proclaymed Edict and continent Cannon; Which with, o with, but with this I paſſion to ſay wherewith: / Clo[wne]. With a Wench."
— c. 1595–1596 (date written), W. Shakespere [i.e., William Shakespeare], A Pleasant Conceited Comedie Called, Loues Labors Lost. […] (First Quarto), London: […] W[illiam] W[hite] for Cut[h]bert Burby, published 1598, →OCLC, [Act I, scene i]:
"Neither do wee pleaſe them with their owne crimes, or obſcæne ſpectacles: whereas they celebrate both the guilt that there gods incurred who were men, and the fayned pleaſures of ſuch of them as were flat deuills."
— 1610, S[ain]t Augustine, “Of the Honor that Christians Giue to the Martires”, in J[ohn] H[ealey], transl., St. Augustine, of the Citie of God: […], [London]: […] George Eld, →OCLC, page 336:
"Shall I recount his intemperance, voluptuouſneſs, and obſcæne manner of living? or his impious, doubtful or wicked end? no, let them be buried with his aſhes."
— 1654, Jo[hn] Webster, “Of Scholastick Philosophy”, in Academiarum Examen, or The Examination of Academies. […], London: […] Giles Calvert, […], →OCLC, paragraph 3, page 54:
"What is obscene today may not be so tomorrow or what is obscene at one place may not be obscene at another place."
— 1990, Inder S. Rana, Law of Obscenity in India, USA & UK, New Delhi: Mittal Publications, →ISBN, page 109:
"The chapter closes with some thoughts on the obscene consumer from both a postmodern, and especially a modern, perspective. From the latter point of view, the obscene consumer is one who either consumes too little or who consumes what are, from the perspective of consumer society, the 'wrong' things (heroin, guns). (I propose the concept of the 'dangerous consumer' here since it is clear that such consumers can pose a danger to contemporary society.) From a postmodern perspective, the obscene consumer is one who consumes in a highly visible manner."
— 2001, George Ritzer, Explorations in the Sociology of Consumption: Fast Food, Credit Cards and Casinos, London; Thousand Oaks, Calif.: SAGE Publications, →ISBN, pages 8–9:
Explore More C1 Vocabulary Words
CEFR Practice Quiz
The comedian's ____ jokes, full of crude language, offended many audience members.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
The billboard was removed after several complaints were made about its ____ and offensive content.