abstruse

/əbˈstɹuːs/

Etymology

Learned borrowing from Latin abstrūsus (“concealed, hidden; having been concealed”), an adjective use of the perfect passive participle of abstrūdō (“to conceal, hide; to push or thrust away”), from abs- (from ab- (prefix meaning ‘away; from; away from’)) + trūdō (“to push, shove; to thrust”) (ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *trewd- (“to push; to thrust”)). Cognates * Catalan abstrús * German abstrus (“abstruse”) * Italian astruso (“abstruse”) * Middle French abstruse (modern French abstrus, abstruse (“(derogatory, literary) abstruse”) * Portuguese abstruso (“abstruse”) * Spanish abstruso (“abstruse”)

abstruse means difficult to comprehend or understand; obscure. Lexicurio rates it Rare gem — a strength score of 76 out of 100.

Why this word is great

ABSTRUSE — [Adjective] Difficult to comprehend due to being extremely complex, obscure, or concealed. From the Latin abstrūsus ("concealed, hidden"), the past participle of abstrūdere ("to conceal, thrust away"), from abs- (a form of ab-, "away") + trūdere ("to thrust, push"). Unlike "esoteric," which implies knowledge reserved for an initiated few, or "complex," which denotes intricate yet potentially decipherable parts, "abstruse" describes an idea whose very architecture seems willfully withdrawn. It is the theorem proof written in a forgotten notation, the philosophical text that feels like polished stone, or the arcane grimoire left to molder in a crypt. The word is the sound of understanding being thrust away.

adj

Difficult to comprehend or understand; obscure.“Some time the good makithe an ile end⸝ ãd the ile a godd. In this opiniõ⸝ and in ſcrutable miſterie be werithe all his wittes⸝ and at the end of his cogitacions⸝ fyndithe more abſtruſe⸝ and doutfull obiections thẽ at the beginning⸝ […]”
Concealed or hidden; secret.“O vvho is he that could carrie nevves to our olde father, that thou vvert but aliue, although thou vvert hidden in the moſt abſtruſe dungeons of Barbarie; for his riches, my brothers and mine vvould fetch thee from thence.”