Definition of

Conspicuous

Albert Einstein

Someone conspicuous is recognized or prestigious.

The adjective conspicuous has its etymological origin in the Latin language, more precisely in the word conspicuus . The term qualifies someone who is prestigious , distinguished , recognized or prominent .

For example: “The conspicuous writer will visit our city tomorrow to present his new novel,” “No one expected that a conspicuous political leader could carry out such an act,” “Even the most conspicuous scientists can make mistakes in their research .”

The etymology of conspicuous

When studying the etymology of the word conspicuous we discovered that its origin is found in Latin, as mentioned in the first paragraph, and that since ancient times it has had a meaning similar to the current one: "visible, very notable." The Latin adjective conspicuus is made up of the following three parts: the prefix con- , which refers to the performance of an action jointly or globally , that is, between several participants; the root of specere , a verb that can be translated as "to contemplate, to look"; the suffix -uus/-ivus , which tells us about relationship and passive possibility.

Taking all this into account, we can resolve that something conspicuous is something that cannot be overlooked since it is "globally visible." The components of this term allow us to corroborate, therefore, that a conspicuous person is, in fact, notorious or illustrious from the point of view of society .

Coleoptera

Conspicua is a term that appears in the name of different insects.

Examples, synonyms and antonyms

Someone conspicuous is illustrious for his or her ability or achievements. A doctor who invented an effective vaccine against a serious disease can be considered a conspicuous professional.

Some of the synonyms of the word conspicuous , in addition to those used so far to define it, are reputed, renowned and famous . Needless to say, in everyday speech we encounter these three, especially the last two, much more frequently than with the adjective conspicuous , although in most cases the use of one or the other only responds to the taste of the interlocutor. that their meanings are equivalent.

Perhaps one of the most curious aspects of this term lies in one of its most common antonyms, unknown , which is actually at the opposite extreme in terms of strength and color: while the first tells us about a series of characteristics worth highlighting that make a person impossible to confuse with others, this sinks the subject into a gray cloud in which he disappears without any hope of being rescued.

When observing the meaning of conspicuous and unknown there is no doubt that they were born to be antonyms. It is a special case, partly because we cannot say anything about an unknown being, while we can spend hours and entire days talking about someone distinguished; The absence of notoriety has no effect, while notoriety attracts public attention and opinion .

The conspicuous as something outstanding

The idea of ​​conspicuous can also be used to name some element that, due to its characteristics, stands out .

“The navigator failed to notice that something conspicuous appeared in the direction of his boat.”, “The canyon has a conspicuous stretch of about ten kilometers in length” y “The bird had a conspicuous orange ring on its right leg.” son frases que muestran este uso.

The term linked to insects and plants

Pistosia conspicua , for its part, is the name of a species of insect that belongs to the family group of chrysomelids . It is a beetle: an animal that has horny elytra covering the wings, a resistant shell and a mouth prepared for chewing.

Among the mantodeans (the order of insects that are also known as mamboretás or mantises), the Sphodromantis conspicua appears, which can be found in different African countries .

Euphorbia conspicua , on the other hand, is a plant from the Euphorbiaceae family, whose members are characterized by unisexual flowers and abundance of latex. This species is phanerogamous because it is a vascular plant capable of producing seeds.