unsharp

English

Etymology

From Middle English *unscharp, from Old English unsċearp, from Proto-West Germanic *unskarp, from Proto-Germanic *unskarpaz, equivalent to un- +‎ sharp. Cognate with Saterland Frisian uunskäärp (“unsharp”), West Frisian ûnskerp (“unsharp”), Dutch onscherp (“unsharp”), German Low German unscharp (“unsharp”), German unscharf (“unsharp”), Danish uskarp (“unsharp”), Swedish oskarp (“unsharp”), Norwegian uskarp (“unsharp”).

Adjective

unsharp (comparative more unsharp, superlative most unsharp)

1. Not sharp.
   1. (computer graphics) Out of focus; blurry.
   2. Dulled or intentionally blunt.

      an unsharp tool

Synonyms

• nonsharp

Antonyms

• sharp
• crisp

Derived terms

• unsharpness

Translations

not sharp — see also unsharpened

• Danish: uskarp
• Norwegian:

  Bokmål: uskarp

  Nynorsk: uskarp

Verb

unsharp (third-person singular simple present unsharps, present participle unsharping, simple past and past participle unsharped)

1. (transitive, computer graphics) To sharpen (an image) by creating a blurred ("unsharp") negative as a mask, and then combining that mask with the original.

Usage notes

• Not to be confused with unsharpen.