INDEX:
1. very easy to notice or understand
2. extremely obvious and impossible not to notice
3. when something wrong, bad, or dishonest is very obvious
4. not obvious
RELATED WORDS
see also
↑ CLEAR/NOT CLEAR
↑ NOTICE/NOT NOTICE
↑ CERTAINLY/DEFINITELY
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1. very easy to notice or understand
▷ obvious /ˈɒbviəsǁˈɑːb-/ [adjective]
something that is obvious is very easy to notice or understand :
▪ There is an obvious connection between the two murders.
▪ ‘Why is she leaving?’ ‘Well, it’s obvious, isn’t it?’
it is obvious that
▪ It’s obvious that something is wrong.
▪ It was obvious from the start that my parents disliked Nancy.
it is obvious to somebody
▪ It should be obvious to everyone that we need to make some changes.
for obvious reasons
when the reasons are so obvious that you do not need to say what they are
▪ For obvious reasons, we’ve had to cancel tonight’s performance.
▷ clear /klɪəʳ/ [adjective]
if it is clear that something is true, it is easy to notice that it is true and you feel sure about it and have no doubts :
it is clear that
▪ It was clear that Lesley was very upset by what had happened.
it is clear to somebody
▪ It was clear to me that my father was dying.
it becomes clear
▪ It soon became clear that there were not enough police officers to deal with the situation.
▪ It became clear after talking to him that Andrew wasn’t going to cooperate.
clear evidence/example/sign etc
▪ There is clear evidence that certain diets reduce your chances of getting cancer.
▪ clear signs of an economic recovery
▷ obviously/clearly /ˈɒbviəsliǁˈɑːb-, ˈklɪəʳli/ [adverb]
use this to emphasize that it is easy to see that something is true :
▪ We’re obviously going to need more help.
▪ Clearly, the situation is more complicated than we first thought.
▪ The children were clearly upset.
▪ Obviously, this guy’s a complete fraud.
▪ The language of the article clearly reveals the author’s bias.
▷ can tell /kən ˈtel/ [verb phrase]
to know that something must be true because you can see signs that show this :
can tell (that)
▪ I can tell that Mark isn’t happy here.
▪ Even though it was dark, she could tell it was him.
can tell if
▪ I can’t tell if this is dirty or not. Can you?
can tell by
▪ I could tell by the way she walked that her knee was still bothering her.
▷ it is easy to see /ɪt ɪz ˌiːzi tə ˈsiː/
if it is easy to see that something is true, it is very easy for anyone to notice or understand that fact :
it is easy to see (that)
▪ It’s easy to see that he isn’t well.
▪ It was easy to see that Minna was embarrassed by her father’s behaviour.
it is easy to see how/why/what
▪ It’s easy to see why this place is so popular.
▷ noticeable /ˈnəʊtɪsəb ə l, ˈnəʊtəsəb ə l/ [adjective]
a noticeable difference, change, improvement etc is easy to notice :
noticeable change
▪ The most noticeable change was in my younger brother, who had grown quite a bit and was now a third-grader.
noticeable improvement
▪ There has been a noticeable improvement in Jeremy’s behaviour lately.
barely/hardly/scarcely noticeable
almost not noticeable
▪ Stop worrying about your pimples; they’re barely noticeable.
it is noticeable that
▪ It was quite noticeable that everyone had been invited except for Gail.
noticeably [adverb]
▪ The performance was noticeably better during the second half of the concert.
▷ perceptible /pəʳˈseptɪb ə l, pəʳˈseptəb ə l/ [adjective] formal
a perceptible difference, change, improvement etc can be noticed even though it is small :
▪ The influence of Sartre is perceptible in Hogan’s novel.
perceptible change
▪ According to Reynolds, there has been a slight but perceptible change in public attitude lately.
barely/scarcely/hardly perceptible
almost not perceptible
▪ His lips curved in a barely perceptible smile.
▪ When he asked if she wanted something to eat, she gave a barely perceptible nod.
perceptibly [adverb]
▪ Outdoors, it was perceptibly colder.
▷ distinct/definite /dɪˈstɪŋkt, ˈdef ə nə̇t/ [adjective only before noun]
a distinct or definite possibility, feeling, quality etc is noticeable and cannot be ignored :
distinct/definite possibility
▪ A civil war is a distinct possibility.
▪ Food shortages are so severe that mass starvation is a definite possibility.
distinct advantage
▪ Trigg’s height should give him a distinct advantage in his match against Robinson.
distinct impression
▪ I had the distinct impression that Rachel was displeased.
distinctly/definitely [adverb]
▪ I distinctly heard the noise again, this time coming from the cellar.
▷ apparent/evident /əˈpærənt, ˈevə̇d ə nt/ [adjective not usually before noun]
obvious - used formally or in literature :
▪ Even at the age of eight his musical talent was apparent.
for no apparent reason
without a clear reason
▪ Suddenly, and for no apparent reason, he turned his back and walked away.
it is evident (from something) that
▪ From the look on Jill’s face, it was evident that the news came as a complete shock.
it became apparent/evident that
▪ It became evident that Lena wasn’t going to be able to handle the project on her own.
▪ After a few months, it became apparent that Vicky did not have a genuine interest in her job.
▷ conspicuous /kənˈspɪkjuəs/ [adjective]
something or someone that is conspicuous is very easy to notice, because they are different from everything or everyone else around them :
▪ Cuzco’s few tourists are conspicuous as they explore the old cobbled streets.
▪ Downtown business owners say they want the city’s homeless shelter moved to a less conspicuous location.
conspicuously [adverb]
▪ Airport officials became suspicious when the man tried to check what they describe as a conspicuously heavy bag.
2. extremely obvious and impossible not to notice
▷ unmistakable /ˌʌnmɪˈsteɪkəb ə l, ˌʌnməˈsteɪkəb ə l/ [adjective]
unmistakable sight/sound/smell etc
▪ The secretary of state said the measures are designed to send the regime a clear and unmistakable signal.
▪ the unmistakable sounds of mariachi music
unmistakably [adverb]
▪ The woman’s accent was unmistakably French.
▷ blindingly/perfectly/quite obvious /ˌblaɪndɪŋli, ˌpɜːʳfɪktli, kwaɪt ˈɒbviəsǁ-ˈɑːb-/ [adjective] informal
so obvious that it is impossible not to notice :
▪ The reason she stopped smoking is perfectly obvious: she’s pregnant.
▪ a blindingly obvious mistake
▷ speaks for itself /ˌspiːks fər ɪtˈself/ [verb phrase not in progressive]
if you say that a fact speaks for itself, you mean it shows that something is so obviously good or obviously bad that you do not need to tell people how good or bad it is :
▪ The quality of our products speaks for itself.
▪ The fact that so many parents refuse to send their children to the school speaks for itself.
▷ self-evident /self ˈevə̇d ə nt/ [adjective] formal
facts, ideas etc that are self-evident are obvious and true, although some people may not accept them or know about them :
▪ The facts in this case are self-evident and cannot be denied.
▪ self-evident truths
it is self-evident that
▪ It is self-evident to most people that the government is under no obligation to finance the arts.
▷ it sticks/stands out a mile /ɪt ˌstɪks, ˌstændz aʊt ə ˈmaɪl/ British informal
you say it sticks or stands out a mile when you think that someone’s character, feelings, or background are obvious :
▪ I’m absolutely sure he’s a retired army officer. It sticks out a mile.
▪ You can see he’s desperately jealous. It stands out a mile.
▷ it sticks/stands out like a sore thumb /ɪt ˌstɪks, ˌstændz aʊt laɪk ə ˌsɔːʳ ˈθʌm/
you say it sticks or stands out like a sore thumb when something looks very different from everything around it :
▪ I’m not going to the party dressed like this - I’d stick out like a sore thumb.
▷ you just/only have to ... /juː ˈdʒʌst, ˈəʊnli hæv tuː/
you say that you only have to look at something, read something etc when you think something is so obvious that anybody will notice it :
▪ You only have to look at Turner’s later oil paintings to see what a genius he was.
▪ You just have to look at family photos from that time to see that there was a lot of sadness and bitterness over my parents’ divorce.
▷ be written all over somebody’s face /biː ˌrɪtn ɔːl əʊvəʳ somebodyˈs ˈfeɪs/ [verb phrase]
if you say that a fact or feeling is written all over someone’s face you mean that you can see, just by looking at the expression on their face, that it is true :
▪ You’re in love with him. It’s written all over your face.
▪ When Joey opened the package and saw that it wasn’t a fire engine, the disappointment was written all over his face.
▷ you can’t miss it /juː ˌkɑːnt ˈmɪs ɪtǁ-ˌkænt-/
you say you can’t miss it when you are giving someone directions to a place that is very easy to find or notice :
▪ Their house is on the left. It has a pink door. You can’t miss it.
▷ be staring somebody in the face /biː ˌste ə rɪŋ somebody ɪn ðə ˈfeɪs/ [verb phrase]
if something such as a solution to a problem is staring you in the face, it is very obvious - use this especially when someone does not notice or realize something even though it is very obvious :
▪ The solution was staring me in the face.
▪ The answer had been staring him in the face for months.
3. when something wrong, bad, or dishonest is very obvious
▷ blatant /ˈbleɪt ə nt/ [adjective usually before noun]
use this about something that someone does which is clearly bad, but which they do not seem to be ashamed of :
▪ a blatant lie
▪ The company’s refusal to hire him was a blatant act of discrimination.
▪ a blatant disregard for public safety
blatantly [adverb]
▪ blatantly racist comments
▷ flagrant /ˈfleɪgrənt/ [adjective usually before noun]
done in a very obvious way and showing no respect for laws, rules, or the truth etc :
▪ The regime has often been criticized for its flagrant abuses of human rights.
▪ Poison gas was used, in flagrant disregard of the Geneva Convention.
flagrantly [adverb]
▪ For over six years, the mayor and his cronies have flagrantly misused public funds.
▷ glaring /ˈgle ə rɪŋ/ [adjective only before noun]
use this about mistakes or problems that are obviously bad or wrong :
▪ It was a glaring error, which cost the company over $2 million in lost business.
▪ ‘It was a glaring example of bad judgment,’ said one official who asked not to be named.
▷ patently /ˈpeɪtntliǁˈpæ-/ [adverb] formal
patently false/absurd/ridiculous/impossible etc
obviously false, absurd etc, in a way that no reasonable person could disagree with :
▪ Jenkins’ explanation of the situation is patently absurd.
▪ The statement is patently false and an embarrassing public demonstration of his weakness as university leader.
4. not obvious
▷ subtle /ˈsʌtl/ [adjective]
a subtle change or difference is difficult to notice unless you look closely or think about it carefully :
▪ The patterns look very similar, but there are subtle differences between them.
▪ We noticed some deterioration in her speech, but it was very subtle.
▪ It was around this time that I started to notice subtle changes in Clive’s character.
▷ unobtrusive /ˌʌnəbˈtruːsɪv◂/ [adjective]
something, especially an object, that is unobtrusive is not very noticeable, especially because it is small or ordinary compared to other things :
▪ The aerial is small and unobtrusive, fitting closely to the chimney stack.
▪ The researchers will make their observations in the most unobtrusive way possible.
▪ Hart, who attended law school with Danforth, remembers him as ‘quiet and unobtrusive.’
unobtrusively [adverb]
▪ The new hearing aid fits unobtrusively into the outer ear.
▷ inconspicuous /ˌɪnkənˈspɪkjuəs◂/ [adjective]
things or people that are inconspicuous are not noticeable because they look the same as the people or things around them :
▪ Carpet cleaner should always be tested in an inconspicuous spot first.
▪ The two bank robbers got in line at a nearby fast-food restaurant, hoping to be inconspicuous as police flooded the area.
inconspicuously [adverb]
▪ Throughout the meal she was inconspicuously passing food to the dog under the table.
▪ Arriving late, we tried to take our seats as inconspicuously as possible.