Definition
Conspicuous describes what the eye cannot help finding — from the Latin conspicere, 'to catch sight of'. The trick of the word is that conspicuousness lives in the contrast, not the thing: a red jacket is invisible at a carnival and conspicuous at a funeral. Biology uses it for warning colors meant to be seen; sociology for 'conspicuous consumption', spending whose real product is being noticed. And the idiom 'conspicuous by its absence' completes the logic — where attention expects something, even its missing is loud.
Examples
- The new glass tower is conspicuous among the brick warehouses of the old district.
- The minister's name was conspicuous by its absence from the list of supporters.
- Male peacocks pay for their conspicuous plumage with a higher risk of predation.
Collocations
conspicuous by its absence·conspicuous consumption·a conspicuous lack of·conspicuously absent·make oneself conspicuous
Synonyms
noticeable·prominent·striking·eye-catching·obvious
Antonyms
inconspicuous·unobtrusive·hidden
Word family
conspicuously (adverb)·conspicuousness (noun)·inconspicuous (adjective)
In TOEFL & IELTS
TOEFL biology passages use it for animal signaling — conspicuous coloration that warns predators off — and test the antonym 'inconspicuous' (camouflage) in the same breath. Social-science texts lean on Veblen's term 'conspicuous consumption'. The idiom 'conspicuous by its absence' appears in reading and is a quietly impressive move in IELTS writing. Vocabulary questions pair it with 'noticeable'; learn both directions.