Advertisement

abstruse (adj.)

1590s, "remote from comprehension," from Middle French abstrus (16c.) or directly from Latin abstrusus "hidden, concealed, secret," past participle of abstrudere "conceal, hide," literally "to thrust away," from assimilated form of ab "off, away from" (see ab-) + trudere "to thrust, push," from PIE root *treud- "to press, push, squeeze" (see threat). Related: Abstrusely; abstruseness.

Origin and meaning of abstruse

Others are reading

Advertisement
Definitions of abstruse from WordNet

abstruse (adj.)
difficult to penetrate; incomprehensible to one of ordinary understanding or knowledge;
the professor's lectures were so abstruse that students tended to avoid them
Synonyms: deep / recondite
From wordnet.princeton.edu