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HOW TO PRONOUNCE

obtuse

/əbˈt(j)us/

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American Pronunciation Guide · 0:47
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What does obtuse mean?

adjective

  1. Blunt; not sharp, pointed, or acute in form.
  2. Blunt, or rounded at the extremity.
  3. Larger than one, and smaller than two right angles, equivalently more than 90° and less than 180°.
More meanings (5)

adjective

  1. Obtuse-angled, having an obtuse angle.
  2. Intellectually dull or dim-witted.
  3. Of sound, etc.: deadened, muffled, muted.
  4. Indirect or circuitous.

verb

  1. (obsolete) To dull or reduce an emotion or a physical state.

Definitions regrouped for readability · CC BY-SA 4.0

IPA pronunciation

/əbˈt(j)us/

Wiktionary contributors · CC BY-SA 4.0

Pronunciation varies by speaker and region. About these dictionary pronunciations.

In the pages of books

See this word in context.

Each of the four solid angles in this figure is a little larger than the largest of obtuse angles.
PlatoTimaeusTranslated by Benjamin JowettProject Gutenberg ebook #1572
Marian, primed to a humorous mood, would discover the queer-shaped flints aforesaid, and shriek with laughter, Tess remaining severely obtuse.
Thomas HardyTess of the d'Urbervilles: A Pure WomanProject Gutenberg ebook #110
More book examples (3)
The upper carnivorous tooth has three lobes, and an obtuse heel; the lower has two lobes, pointed and sharp, and no heel.
James InglisSport and Work on the Nepaul Frontier Twelve Years Sporting Reminiscences of an Indigo PlanterProject Gutenberg ebook #10818
If our table is 'really' rectangular, it will look, from almost all points of view, as if it had two acute angles and two obtuse angles.
Bertrand RussellThe Problems of PhilosophyProject Gutenberg ebook #5827
The berries are large and very obtuse, conical, dark-red, large-grained, and covered with a thick bloom, very juicy, and exceedingly soft--too much so for market purposes.
Edward Payson RoeSuccess with Small FruitsProject Gutenberg ebook #6117