opaque: meaning, definition, pronunciation and examples
C1Formal to neutral
Quick answer
What does “opaque” mean?
Not allowing light to pass through.
Audio
Pronunciation
Definition
Meaning and Definition
Not allowing light to pass through; impossible to see through.
Not able to be understood; difficult to comprehend or unclear.
Dialectal Variation
British vs American Usage
Differences
No significant difference in core meaning or usage. Spelling is identical.
Connotations
Slightly more formal in everyday British English; equally common in academic/professional contexts in both varieties.
Frequency
Slightly higher frequency in American academic texts (corpus data).
Grammar
How to Use “opaque” in a Sentence
[BE] opaque[BE] opaque to something (e.g., light, understanding)[MAKE/RENDER] something opaqueVocabulary
Collocations
Examples
Examples of “opaque” in a Sentence
verb
British English
- The new privacy film will opaque the bathroom window.
American English
- The developer applied a coating to opaque the glass for privacy.
adverb
British English
- The glass was painted opaquely to block the view.
American English
- The data was presented opaquely, hiding key details.
Usage
Meaning in Context
Business
Refers to lack of financial or procedural transparency. 'The company's accounting practices were deliberately opaque.'
Academic
Describes complex, difficult-to-understand theories or writing. 'The philosopher's later work is notoriously opaque.'
Everyday
Used for physical objects like windows, liquids, or clothing. 'I need opaque tights for this dress.'
Technical
In computing, refers to data types or values whose internal structure is hidden. 'The function returns an opaque handle.'
Watch out
Common Mistakes When Using “opaque”
- Using 'opaque' to mean 'obvious' (the opposite of its meaning).
- Misspelling as 'opaqu' or 'opake'.
- Incorrect pronunciation /əʊˈpæk/ (like 'pack').
FAQ
Frequently Asked Questions
'Opacity' is the noun, meaning the state of being opaque.
Not directly. You describe a person's *motives*, *statements*, or *writing* as opaque (i.e., hard to understand), not the person themselves.
'Opaque' means no light passes through (you cannot see through it). 'Translucent' allows some light to pass but diffuses it, so you cannot see clearly through it (e.g., frosted glass).
It is neutral to formal. In everyday conversation for physical objects, people might say 'not see-through' or 'cloudy'. For abstract concepts, 'unclear', 'confusing', or 'hard to understand' are more common in casual speech.
Not allowing light to pass through.
Opaque: in British English it is pronounced /əʊˈpeɪk/, and in American English it is pronounced /oʊˈpeɪk/. Tap the audio buttons above to hear it.
Phrases
Idioms & Phrases
- “(as) opaque as mud”
Learning
Memory Aids
Mnemonic
Think of 'OPA' in 'opaque' sounding like 'Oh PAH!' – something you might say when you can't see through it or understand it.
Conceptual Metaphor
UNDERSTANDING IS SEEING / CLARITY IS TRANSPARENCY → Therefore, 'opaque' maps lack of understanding to lack of visual clarity.
Practice
Quiz
In which context is 'opaque' used metaphorically?