different between unclear vs hazy

English

Etymology

From Middle English unclere, equivalent to un- +? clear. Compare Saterland Frisian uunkloor (“unclear”), West Frisian ûnklear (“inoperative, broken”), Dutch onklaar (“out of order, defective, broken”), German unklar (“unclear”), Danish uklar (“unclear”), Swedish oklar (“unclear”).

Pronunciation

• (US) IPA^(key): /?n?kl??/
• Rhymes: -??(r)

Adjective

unclear (comparative unclearer or more unclear, superlative unclearest or most unclear)

1. Ambiguous; liable to more than one interpretation.
2. Not clearly or explicitly defined.
3. Not easy to see or read; indecipherable or unreadable.
4. Not having a clear idea; uncertain.

   I'm still unclear about what she meant by that remark.

Derived terms

• unclearly (adv)

Translations

Anagrams

• crenula, lucarne, nuclear

English

Etymology

From earlier hawsey (1625), a nautical term of uncertain origin. Possibly from Middle English *hasi, *haswy, from Old English haswi? (“grey; ashen; dusky”), from Old English hasu (“dusky; grey; ashen”), from Proto-Germanic *haswaz (“grey”), from Proto-Indo-European *?eh?s- (“bright grey”), surface analysis as haze +? -y; although Modern English haze is more likely a back-formation of hazy.

Pronunciation

• (UK, US) IPA^(key): /?he?zi/
• Rhymes: -e?zi

Adjective

hazy (comparative hazier, superlative haziest)

1. Thick or obscured with haze.

   a hazy view of the polluted city street

2. Not clear or transparent.
3. Obscure; confused; not clear.

   a hazy argument

   a hazy intellect

Synonyms

• (thick with haze): hazed; see also Thesaurus:nebulous
• (not clear or transparent): blurry, fuzzy, ill-defined; see also Thesaurus:indistinct
• (obscure, confused): ambiguous, equivocal; see also Thesaurus:vague

Derived terms

• hazily
• haziness

Translations

Further reading

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

Anagrams

• yazh