different between unbecoming vs obscene

English

Etymology

From un- +? becoming. Compare Middle English unbicomelich (“unbecoming”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /??nb??k?m??/

Adjective

unbecoming (comparative more unbecoming, superlative most unbecoming)

1. Not flattering, attractive or appropriate.

   She wore a rather unbecoming hairstyle.

2. Not in keeping with the expected standards of one's position.

   He was accused of conduct unbecoming an officer and a gentleman.

Synonyms

• unsuitable
• unfit
• indecent
• indecorous
• improper

Antonyms

• becoming
• befitting
• suiting

Related terms

• unbecomingly
• unbecomingness

Translations

Verb

unbecoming

1. present participle of unbecome

Noun

unbecoming (plural unbecomings)

1. The process by which something unbecomes.

Further reading

• unbecoming in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam, 1913.
• unbecoming in The Century Dictionary, New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911.
• unbecoming at OneLook Dictionary Search

English

Etymology

From Middle French obscene (modern French obscène (“indecent, obscene”)), and from its etymon Latin obsc?nus, obscaenus (“inauspicious; ominous; disgusting, filthy; offensive, repulsive; indecent, lewd, obscene”). The further etymology is uncertain, but may be from ob- (prefix meaning ‘towards’) + caenum (“dirt, filth; mire, mud”) (possibly ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *?weyn- (“to make dirty, soil; filth; mud”)) or scaevus (“left, on the left side; clumsy; (figurative) unlucky”) (from Proto-Indo-European *skeh?iwo-).

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /?b?si?n/
• (General American) enPR: ?b-s?n?, IPA^(key): /?b?sin/
• Rhymes: -i?n
• Hyphenation: ob?scene

Adjective

obscene (comparative obscener or more obscene, superlative obscenest or most obscene) (see usage notes)

1. Offensive to current standards of decency or morality.

   Synonyms: see Thesaurus:obscene

   Antonyms: decent, moral, nonobscene
2. Lewd or lustful.

   Synonyms: see Thesaurus:obscene

   Antonyms: chaste, nonobscene, pure
3. Disgusting or repulsive.

   Synonyms: see Thesaurus:obscene

   Antonym: nonobscene
4. (by extension) Beyond all reason; excessive.

   Synonyms: see Thesaurus:excessive

   Antonyms: see Thesaurus:moderate
5. (chiefly Britain, criminal law) Liable to corrupt or deprave.

   Synonyms: see Thesaurus:obscene

   Antonyms: decent, nonobscene

Usage notes

• The comparative form obscener and superlative form obscenest, though formed by valid rules for English, are less common than more obscene and most obscene.
• In criminal law, many jurisdictions distinguish between the terms obscene, indecent, and profane when regulating broadcasted content, with obscene typically being the most severe of the three categories.

Alternative forms

• obscæne (obsolete)

Derived terms

• nonobscene
• obscenely
• obsceneness (rare)
• obscenometer (humorous, obsolete)

Related terms

• obscenity
• obscenous (obsolete)
• obscenousness (obsolete)

Translations

References

Further reading

• obscenity on Wikipedia.Wikipedia

Latin

Adjective

obsc?ne

1. vocative masculine singular of obsc?nus

References

• obscene in Charlton T. Lewis and Charles Short (1879) A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
• obscene in Charlton T. Lewis (1891) An Elementary Latin Dictionary, New York: Harper & Brothers
• obscene in Gaffiot, Félix (1934) Dictionnaire illustré Latin-Français, Hachette

Romanian

Adjective

obscene f pl

1. feminine plural of obscen