Broad vs. Vague — What's the Difference?
Difference Between Broad and Vague
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Compare with Definitions
Broad
Wide in extent from side to side
A broad river.
Broad shoulders.
Vague
Of uncertain, indefinite, or unclear character or meaning
Many patients suffer vague symptoms
Broad
Large in expanse; spacious
A broad lawn.
Vague
Not clear in meaning or expression; inexplicit.
Broad
Having a certain width from side to side
A sidewalk three feet broad.
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Vague
Not thinking or expressing oneself clearly
"Most of us are quite vague about the theoretical underpinnings of the medical theories that guide our doctors" (Kwame Anthony Appiah).
Broad
Full; open
Broad daylight.
Vague
Lacking definite shape, form, or character; indistinct
Saw a vague outline of a building through the fog.
Broad
Covering a wide scope; general
A broad rule.
Vague
Indistinctly felt, perceived, understood, or recalled; hazy
A vague uneasiness.
Broad
Liberal; tolerant
Had broad views regarding social services.
Vague
Not clearly expressed; stated in indefinite terms.
Broad
Relating to or covering the main facts or the essential points
A plan presented in broad outline.
Vague
Not having a precise meaning.
A vague term of abuse
Broad
Plain and clear; obvious
Gave us a broad hint to leave.
Vague
Not clearly defined, grasped, or understood; indistinct; slight.
Only a vague notion of what’s needed
A vague hint of a thickening waistline
I haven’t the vaguest idea.
Broad
Vulgar; ribald
A broad joke.
Vague
Not clearly felt or sensed; somewhat subconscious.
A vague longing
Broad
Strikingly regional or dialectal
A broad Southern accent.
Vague
Not thinking or expressing one’s thoughts clearly or precisely.
Broad
(Linguistics) Pronounced with the tongue placed low and flat and with the oral cavity wide open, like the a in father.
Vague
Lacking expression; vacant.
Broad
A wide flat part, as of one's hand.
Vague
Not sharply outlined; hazy.
Broad
Offensive Slang A woman or girl.
Vague
Wandering; vagrant; vagabond.
Broad
Fully; completely.
Vague
(obsolete) A wandering; a vagary.
Broad
Wide in extent or scope.
Three feet broad
The broad expanse of ocean
Vague
An indefinite expanse.
Broad
Extended, in the sense of diffused; open; clear; full.
Vague
(archaic) to wander; to roam; to stray.
Broad
Having a large measure of any thing or quality; unlimited; unrestrained.
Vague
To become vague or act in a vague manner.
Broad
Comprehensive; liberal; enlarged.
Vague
To make vague negative comments publicly; to make highly veiled complaints or insults.
Broad
Plain; evident.
A broad hint
Vague
Wandering; vagrant; vagabond.
She danced along with vague, regardless eyes.
Broad
General rather than specific.
To be in broad agreement
Vague
Unsettled; unfixed; undetermined; indefinite; ambiguous; as, a vague idea; a vague proposition.
This faith is neither a mere fantasy of future glory, nor a vague ebullition of feeling.
The poet turned away, and gave himself up to a sort of vague revery, which he called thought.
Broad
(writing) Unsubtle; obvious.
Vague
Proceeding from no known authority; unauthenticated; uncertain; flying; as, a vague report.
Some legend strange and vague.
Broad
Free; unrestrained; unconfined.
Vague
An indefinite expanse.
The gray vague of unsympathizing sea.
Broad
(dated) Gross; coarse; indelicate.
A broad compliment; a broad joke; broad humour
Vague
A wandering; a vagary.
Broad
(of an accent) Strongly regional.
She still has a broad Scottish accent, despite moving to California 20 years ago.
Vague
To wander; to roam; to stray.
Broad
(Gaelic languages) Velarized, i.e. not palatalized.
Vague
Not clearly understood or expressed;
An obscure turn of phrase
An impulse to go off and fight certain obscure battles of his own spirit
Their descriptions of human behavior become vague, dull, and unclear
Vague...forms of speech...have so long passed for mysteries of science
Broad
(UK) A shallow lake, one of a number of bodies of water in eastern Norfolk and Suffolk.
Vague
Not precisely limited, determined, or distinguished;
An undefined term
Undefined authority
Some undefined sense of excitement
Vague feelings of sadness
A vague uneasiness
Broad
A lathe tool for turning down the insides and bottoms of cylinders.
Vague
Lacking clarity or distinctness;
A dim figure in the distance
Only a faint recollection
Shadowy figures in the gloom
Saw a vague outline of a building through the fog
A few wispy memories of childhood
Broad
A British gold coin worth 20 shillings, issued by the Commonwealth of England in 1656.
Broad
A kind of floodlight.
Broad
A playing card.
Broad
(dated) A prostitute, a woman of loose morals.
Broad
A woman or girl.
Broad
Wide; extend in breadth, or from side to side; - opposed to narrow; as, a broad street, a broad table; an inch broad.
Broad
Extending far and wide; extensive; vast; as, the broad expanse of ocean.
Broad
Extended, in the sense of diffused; open; clear; full.
Broad
Fig.: Having a large measure of any thing or quality; not limited; not restrained; - applied to any subject, and retaining the literal idea more or less clearly, the precise meaning depending largely on the substantive.
A broad mixture of falsehood.
Broad
Comprehensive; liberal; enlarged.
The words in the Constitution are broad enough to include the case.
In a broad, statesmanlike, and masterly way.
Broad
Plain; evident; as, a broad hint.
Broad
Free; unrestrained; unconfined.
As broad and general as the casing air.
Broad
Characterized by breadth. See Breadth.
Broad
Cross; coarse; indelicate; as, a broad compliment; a broad joke; broad humor.
Broad
Strongly marked; as, a broad Scotch accent.
It is as broad as long, whether they rise to others, or bring others down to them.
Broad
The broad part of anything; as, the broad of an oar.
Broad
The spread of a river into a sheet of water; a flooded fen.
Broad
A lathe tool for turning down the insides and bottoms of cylinders.
Broad
A woman, especially one who is sexually promiscuous; - usually considered offensive.
Broad
Slang term for a woman;
A broad is a woman who can throw a mean punch
Broad
Having great (or a certain) extent from one side to the other;
Wide roads
A wide necktie
Wide margins
Three feet wide
A river two miles broad
Broad shoulders
A broad river
Broad
Broad in scope or content;
Across-the-board pay increases
An all-embracing definition
Blanket sanctions against human-rights violators
An invention with broad applications
A panoptic study of Soviet nationality
Granted him wide powers
Broad
Not detailed or specific;
A broad rule
The broad outlines of the plan
Felt an unspecific dread
Broad
Lacking subtlety; obvious;
Gave us a broad hint that it was time to leave
Broad
Being at a peak or culminating point;
Broad day
Full summer
High noon
Broad
Very large in expanse or scope;
A broad lawn
The wide plains
A spacious view
Spacious skies
Broad
(of speech) heavily and noticeably regional;
A broad southern accent
Broad
Showing or characterized by broad-mindedness;
A broad political stance
Generous and broad sympathies
A liberal newspaper
Tolerant of his opponent's opinions
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