Obscurare

Obscurare is a Latin verb meaning to obscure, to darken, or to render something unclear or hidden. It belongs to the first conjugation and has the principal parts obscurō, obscuravī, obscūratum. Its present active indicative forms are obscurō, obscurās, obscurat, obscurāmus, obscurātis, obscurant; imperfect obscurābam, obscurābās, obscurābat, obscurābāmus, obscurābātis, obscurābant; perfect obscurāvī, obscurāvistī, obscurāvit, obscurāvimus, obscurāvistis, obscurāvērunt, and the supine obscurātum. In the passive, common forms include obscuror, obscurāris, obscūrātur, obscurāmur, obscurāminī, obscūrāntur.

The etymology traces to obscūrus "dark, hidden" with the prefix ob-, yielding the sense "to make dark or to hide." In Latin, obscurare occurred in literal expressions (to darken light or a physical surface) and in figurative uses (to obscure truth, to obscure someone’s meaning or intentions). It is attested across classical and medieval Latin and remains a standard example of a regular first-conjugation verb.

Cognate forms appear in Romance languages, for example Italian oscurare, Spanish oscurecer, Portuguese obscurecer, and French obscurer. In English, the root survives in the adjective obscure and in nouns such as obscurity; the verb obscurare itself is mainly of interest in Latin dictionaries and philological discussions.

See also: Obscurity, Obscurantism, Obfuscation.