VocabauraVOCABAURA

opaque

adjective · noun · verb

Simple meaning

Not transmitting or reflecting light or radiant energy.

Pronunciation

Say it like this:

ohpayk

Say the bold part a little louder.

US device voice
IPA pronunciation (US)

oʊˈpeɪk

This word is pronounced essentially the same in American and British English, so one transcription covers both.

IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) is a standard way of writing speech sounds.

Word Review

Definition

Everyday modern meanings first, grouped by part of speech.

adjective

  1. Not transmitting or reflecting light or radiant energy; impenetrable to sight

  2. Neither reflecting nor emitting light.

  3. Allowing little light to pass through, not translucent or transparent.

  4. figuratively

    Unclear, unintelligible, hard to get or explain the meaning of.

  5. figuratively

    Obtuse, stupid.

noun

  1. Something which is opaque rather than translucent.

verb

  1. transitive

    To make, render (more) opaque.

Word at a Glance

Difficulty
C1 · Advanced
Frequency
Moderately Common
Typical Use
Neutral / general English

Word Aura™

How this word commonly comes across.

Aura for this meaning

This meaning: Not transmitting or reflecting light or radiant energy; impenetrable to sight

Used this way, opaque is a reasonably familiar word that usually carries little praise or criticism of its own. It usually sounds natural in a wide range of settings.

Emotional tone
Neutral
Formality
Neutral
Intensity
Not strongly marked
How common
Moderately common
Connotation
No strong connotation
Usage feel
Neutral and straightforward

Word Aura describes common impressions, not a measurement. Tone changes with sentence, speaker, relationship and situation.

More ways to use opaque

  • “Opaque windows of the jail.”adjective

Share your sentence

Write your own example sentence using “opaque”. We review each one before it appears.

Common Patterns and Combinations

How this word naturally appears with others.

opaque projectoropaque glassopaque materialopaque bodyless opaqueopaque screencompletely opaqueopaque object

Tap the highlighted word to open its own entry.

Word Family

Related forms, grouped by how they connect.

Compound terms

Established multiword terms.

  • opaque gemnounCompound term

    A gemstone that is opaque.

  • radio-opaqueadjectiveCompound term

    Not transparent to X-rays or other forms of radiation.

Related Words

Connected to the same idea, not synonyms.

More about this wordSynonyms, forms, origin

Synonyms

Sense: not transmitting or reflecting light or radiant energy

murkyfrosted

Antonyms

Sense: not transmitting or reflecting light or radiant energy

clear

Use This Word

See how this word sounds in a real sentence.

Ask Vocabaura

Understand the word your way.

What Does It Mean Here?

Words can change meaning depending on context.

Use it yourself

Knowing “opaque” starts when you use it. Pick a next step, all free.

Know the meaning? Practice using it in a real situation, free, no credits.

Dictionary data from Wiktionary via the Free Dictionary API. Simple meanings, combinations and word intelligence are built from verified reference data, no AI is used to load this page.