conspicuous
adjective
con·spic·u·ous
kən-ˈspi-kyə-wəs 
-kyü-əs
1
: obvious to the eye or mind
conspicuous changes
The bird has a conspicuous red head.
2
: attracting attention : striking
a conspicuous success
His absence was conspicuous.
3
: marked by a noticeable violation of good taste
conspicuously
adverb
Examples of conspicuous in a Sentence
Conspicuous species of large organisms with small populations are vulnerable—and several fishes and marine mammals, including Steller's sea cow, have succumbed.
—
Stephen Jay Gould, Natural History, June 1991
Its most conspicuous feature was knee breeches, which showed off his well-turned legs and feet.
—Richard Ellmann, Oscar Wilde, 1984
There were a number of conspicuous changes to the building.
The sign was placed in a very conspicuous spot.
The bird has a conspicuous red head.
She felt very conspicuous in her pink coat.
He was uncomfortable about his conspicuous weight gain.
The business was a conspicuous success.
Stephen Jay Gould, Natural History, June 1991
Its most conspicuous feature was knee breeches, which showed off his well-turned legs and feet.
—Richard Ellmann, Oscar Wilde, 1984
There were a number of conspicuous changes to the building.
The sign was placed in a very conspicuous spot.
The bird has a conspicuous red head.
She felt very conspicuous in her pink coat.
He was uncomfortable about his conspicuous weight gain.
The business was a conspicuous success.
Recent Examples on the Web
The images are another apt reminder that many Middle Eastern countries are fairly discreet about their ballistic missile arsenals, with some conspicuous exceptions.
—Paul Iddon, Forbes, 4 Mar. 2025
In their new study, the SETI Institute astronomers focused on the remote detection of nitrogen dioxide, or NO2, a conspicuous by-product of fossil-fuel burning.
—Phil Plait, Scientific American, 27 Feb. 2025
There’s one very good suspense sequence and snippets of accompanying tension, but overall there’s no momentum to the mystery and the lack of interesting character arcs is conspicuous.
—Daniel Fienberg, The Hollywood Reporter, 20 Feb. 2025
Assessing all the information the movie gives us again, a conspicuous absence is any reference to the autistic spectrum.
—David Katz, IndieWire, 18 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for conspicuous
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Paul Iddon, Forbes, 4 Mar. 2025
In their new study, the SETI Institute astronomers focused on the remote detection of nitrogen dioxide, or NO2, a conspicuous by-product of fossil-fuel burning.
—Phil Plait, Scientific American, 27 Feb. 2025
There’s one very good suspense sequence and snippets of accompanying tension, but overall there’s no momentum to the mystery and the lack of interesting character arcs is conspicuous.
—Daniel Fienberg, The Hollywood Reporter, 20 Feb. 2025
Assessing all the information the movie gives us again, a conspicuous absence is any reference to the autistic spectrum.
—David Katz, IndieWire, 18 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for conspicuous
Cite this Entry
“Conspicuous.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/conspicuous. Accessed 14 Mar. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
conspicuous
adjective
con·spic·u·ous
kən-ˈspik-yə-wəs
1
: easily seen
2
: attracting attention : striking
conspicuously
adverb
conspicuousness
noun
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