vague

[veyg] /veɪg/

adjective, vaguer, vaguest.

not clearly or explicitly stated or expressed:

vague promises.

indefinite or indistinct in nature or character, as ideas or feelings:

a vague premonition of disaster.

not clear or distinct to the sight or any other sense; perceptible or recognizable only in an indefinite way:

vague shapes in the dark; vague murmurs behind a door.

not definitely established, determined, confirmed, or known; uncertain:

a vague rumor; The date of his birth is vague.

(of persons) not clear or definite in thought, understanding, or expression:

vague about his motives; a vague person.

(of the eyes, expression, etc.) showing lack of clear perception or understanding:

a vague stare.

Origin

1540-50; (< Middle French) < Latin vagus wandering

Related forms

vaguely, adverb

vagueness, noun

unvague, adjective

unvaguely, adverb

unvagueness, noun

Synonyms

1. unspecific, imprecise. 3. obscure, hazy, shadowy.

Examples from the web for vague

But the agreements were vague, relying more on good will than on concrete obligations.
Nor does the emotion thus evoked end in vague mystical exaltation.
They elude the ordinary reader by their abstraction and delicacy of distinction, but they are far from vague.
She was always full with mystery and subtle movements and denials and vague distrusts and complicated disillusions.
It would be easy to say that she was a conventional beauty, but that would be a poor description-too broad and too vague.
Lately, though, his supporters have been experiencing a vague sense of disappointment.
The early poems are frustratingly obscure, addressed to vague nymphs by a speaker entranced by his own coldness.
Critics say it should be put somewhere else, though they tend to be vague about where.
There is a new posting in my field that is really vague.
Avoid vague sentences that seem as if they could describe anyone in your field.

British Dictionary definitions for vague

/veɪɡ/

adjective

(of statements, meaning, etc) not explicit; imprecise: vague promises

not clearly perceptible or discernible; indistinct: a vague idea, a vague shape

not clearly or definitely established or known: a vague rumour

(of a person or his expression) demonstrating lack of precision or clear thinking; absent-minded

Derived Forms

vaguely, adverb
vagueness, noun

Word Origin

C16: via French from Latin vagus wandering, of obscure origin

Word Origin and History for vague

adj.

1540s, from Middle French vague, from Latin vagus "wandering, rambling, vacillating, vague," of unknown origin. Related: Vagueness.