obvius

Obvius is a Latin adjective with several related senses that center on meeting, facing, or being in the way. In classical Latin it commonly describes something that comes into contact with another thing or person, as in phrases meaning to come to meet someone. The term can also carry a sense of being present, accessible, or readily available, and it can be used in a figurative sense to denote something straightforward or conspicuous in effect.

Etymology and usage

The word is formed with the prefix ob- meaning toward or against and a root related to via or a sense of path, yielding a sense of being in the way, encountered, or facing. In Latin literature obvius appears in constructions such as ad obviam venire, meaning to meet or encounter.

English development

The English adjective obvious derives from Latin obvius through Old French, preserving the idea of something readily seen or encountered. The root also appears in related English derivatives such as obviate, meaning to remove or prevent an obstacle by meeting it or anticipating it, and obviable, a less common adjective-form.

See also

Obvious, Latin grammar, etymology of English words derived from Latin. The term obvius is primarily of linguistic and historical interest, illustrating how Latin roots evolved into modern English vocabulary.

Note

As a Latin term with limited modern use outside scholarly contexts, obvius is most often encountered in discussions of etymology, historical texts, or comparative linguistics, rather than in everyday contemporary prose.