inconspicuous

I1N1C3O1N1S1P3I1C3U1O1U1S1
/ˌɪn.kənˈspɪk.ju.əs/British, Southern, Standard/ˌɪŋkənˈspɪkjʉwəs/

adjective

Invisible.

UncommonFirst used 1620sScrabble 19

Meanings

adjectiveinconspicuous (comparative more inconspicuous, superlative most inconspicuous)

comparative more inconspicuous · superlative most inconspicuous

  1. Not prominent nor easily noticeable.First known use 1828

    Look at those men! They were supposed to be inconspicuous!

    1953, Dalton Trumbo, Ian McLellan Hunter, John Dighton, Roman Holiday, spoken by General Provno
    1 more example

    Approaching danger, whether from octopus, fish or man, arouses caution in a small mollusk and it becomes as inconspicuous as it can.

    2004, Shell Oil Company, Let's Collect Rocks and Shells, Kessinger Publishing Co., page 9

    Synonyms: improminent, inevident, obscure · Antonyms: conspicuous, attention-grabbing, conspicuous, eye-catching, flashy, glossy, grabby, high-profile

Synonyms & antonyms

More synonyms by meaning

adjectivenot prominent or readily noticeable

Opposite

Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.

Origin

  1. Late Latinincōnspicuus
  2. Englishinconspicuous

Learned borrowing from Late Latin incōnspicuus. Equivalent to in- + conspicuous.

Full word history & related roots →

Translations

Arabic غَيْرُ ظَاهِر
  • غَيْرُ ظَاهِر (ḡayru ẓāhir)not prominent or easily noticeable
Bulgarian незабележим, незабелязващ се
  • незабележим (nezabeležim)not prominent or easily noticeable
  • незабелязващ се (nezabeljazvašt se)not prominent or easily noticeable
  • неотличим (neotličim)not prominent or easily noticeable
  • неотличаващ се (neotličavašt se)not prominent or easily noticeable
Czech nenápadný
  • nenápadnýnot prominent or easily noticeable
Dutch onopvallend
  • onopvallendnot prominent or easily noticeable
Finnish huomiota herättämätön, huomaamaton
  • huomiota herättämätönnot prominent or easily noticeable
  • huomaamatonnot prominent or easily noticeable
French discret
  • discretnot prominent or easily noticeable
German unauffällig
  • unauffällignot prominent or easily noticeable
Hungarian alig észrevehető, nem feltűnő
  • alig észrevehetőnot prominent or easily noticeable
  • nem feltűnőnot prominent or easily noticeable
  • feltűnésmentesnot prominent or easily noticeable
  • diszkrétnot prominent or easily noticeable
  • semlegesnot prominent or easily noticeable
  • jellegtelennot prominent or easily noticeable
  • jelentéktelennot prominent or easily noticeable
  • észrevétlennot prominent or easily noticeable
  • észrevehetetlennot prominent or easily noticeable
Norwegian Bokmål uanselig, upåfallende
  • uanselignot prominent or easily noticeable
  • upåfallendenot prominent or easily noticeable
Polish niewidoczny, niezauważalny
  • niewidocznynot prominent or easily noticeable
  • niezauważalnynot prominent or easily noticeable
  • nierzucający się w oczynot prominent or easily noticeable
  • niepozornynot prominent or easily noticeable
Portuguese discreto, inconspícuo
  • discretonot prominent or easily noticeable
  • inconspícuonot prominent or easily noticeable
Russian незаме́тный
  • незаме́тный (nezamétnyj)not prominent or easily noticeable
Slovak nenápadný
  • nenápadnýnot prominent or easily noticeable
Spanish disimulado, desapercibido
  • disimuladonot prominent or easily noticeable
  • desapercibidonot prominent or easily noticeable
  • discretonot prominent or easily noticeable
Swedish oansenlig, diskret
  • oansenlignot prominent or easily noticeable
  • diskretnot prominent or easily noticeable
  • tillbakadragennot prominent or easily noticeable
  • undangömdnot prominent or easily noticeable
  • fördoldnot prominent or easily noticeable
  • doldnot prominent or easily noticeable
  • förstulennot prominent or easily noticeable
  • omärklignot prominent or easily noticeable
Ukrainian непримітний, непомі́тний
  • непримітний (neprymitnyj)not prominent or easily noticeable
  • непомі́тний (nepomítnyj)not prominent or easily noticeable
Cite this entry
APA

inconspicuous. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/inconspicuous

MLA

“inconspicuous.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/inconspicuous. Accessed November 3, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “inconspicuous,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/inconspicuous.

Source: inconspicuous on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.