adj.
Pronunciation: ' e-v ə -d ə nt, -v ə - ˌ dent
Function: adjective
Etymology: Middle English, from Anglo-French, from Latin evident-, evidens, from e- + vident-, videns, present participle of vid ē re to see ― more at WIT
Date: 14th century
: clear to the vision or understanding
synonyms EVIDENT , MANIFEST , PATENT , DISTINCT , OBVIOUS , APPARENT , PLAIN , CLEAR mean readily perceived or apprehended. EVIDENT implies presence of visible signs that lead one to a definite conclusion <an evident fondness for sweets>. MANIFEST implies an external display so evident that little or no inference is required < manifest hostility>. PATENT applies to a cause, effect, or significant feature that is clear and unmistakable once attention has been directed to it < patent defects>. DISTINCT implies such sharpness of outline or definition that no unusual effort to see or hear or comprehend is required <a distinct refusal>. OBVIOUS implies such ease in discovering that it often suggests conspicuousness or little need for perspicacity in the observer <the obvious solution>. APPARENT is very close to EVIDENT except that it may imply more conscious exercise of inference <for no apparent reason>. PLAIN suggests lack of intricacy, complexity, or elaboration <her feelings about him are plain >. CLEAR implies an absence of anything that confuses the mind or obscures the pattern <a clear explanation>.