somewhat unclear to

USAGE SUMMARY

The phrase "somewhat unclear to" is correct and usable in written English.
It can be used when expressing that something is not entirely clear or understandable to a person or group. Example: "The instructions were somewhat unclear to the new employees, leading to confusion during the training session."

✓ Grammatically correct

Science

News & Media

Academia

Human-verified examples from authoritative sources

Exact Expressions

2 human-written examples

The utility of the Monte Carlo approach is also somewhat unclear to me, as it appears that the expected CAI could be calculated analytically, along with confidence intervals, using the multinomial distribution.

Biology Direct

Different reasons for input of large amounts of time are mentioned: it was somewhat unclear to some experts the purpose of the assessment and their tasks, and consultation of background information (literature review and sometimes other information as well) with respect to the complicated topics dealt with in both questionnaires demanded extra time.

Environmental Health: A Global Access Science Source

Human-verified similar examples from authoritative sources

Similar Expressions

58 human-written examples

Overlap across the two species is considerably higher than expected by chance, but it is somewhat unclear how to interpret this observation with respect to the expectation that human and chimpanzee iPSCs would have similar pluripotency potential.

eLife

Our sources are somewhat unclear as to exactly which kinds of materials he took to be involved in the composition of soul.

SEP

To what extent she did influence the productions she appeared in remains somewhat unclear due to all the contradictory as well as fabricated stories surrounding her star persona.

Columbia University

However, it is somewhat unclear how to proceed when batches are confounded with phenotypes; more detailed research is needed to develop methods that adjust simultaneously for linear mixing effects and non-linear technical effects, using datasets having fully annotated technical data such as chip number and position.

Bioinformatics

College administrators could hardly help noticing the justices' statement that "we expect that 25 years from now, the use of racial preferences will no longer be necessary," and were somewhat unclear what to make of it.

The New York Times

Detectives were operating on the theory that the crime was somehow motivated by drugs and money, even if the exact nature of the debts or grievances remained somewhat unclear, according to one of the officials.

The New York Times

Inexplicably, the formula, which is complex and somewhat unclear, appears to dictate that the lower a mixed-status family's income is, the higher the percentage of their income must go to pay rent.

Huffington Post

The precise nature of this association is somewhat unclear due to the atypical shape of the hemodynamic response in white matter (Figure 5)—the white matter response appears to have the same fundamental characteristics as the gray matter response, but evolves much more slowly.

Plosone

It remains somewhat unclear how to define metabolic response of mRCC with PET.

BMC Cancer

Expert writing Tips

Best practice

When using "somewhat unclear to", ensure the context clearly identifies who finds the information unclear. This provides clarity and avoids ambiguity.

Common error

Avoid using "somewhat unclear" without specifying who finds it unclear. Without this context, the statement becomes vague and less informative.

Linguistic Context

The phrase "somewhat unclear to" functions as an adjective phrase expressing a subjective assessment of clarity. It indicates that something is not fully understood by a specific individual or group. As Ludwig AI points out, the phrase is correct and usable.

Expression frequency: Rare

Frequent in

Science

33%

News & Media

33%

Academia

33%

Less common in

Encyclopedias

0%

Wiki

0%

Formal & Business

0%

Ludwig's WRAP-UP

The phrase "somewhat unclear to" is a grammatically sound expression used to indicate a moderate level of uncertainty or lack of understanding by a particular individual or group. Ludwig AI confirms its correctness and usability. Although examples are relatively rare, it appears across diverse contexts including Science, News & Media, and Academia. When utilizing this phrase, ensure you clearly specify who finds the information unclear, and in case you want to express similar concept but using different words, consider alternatives such as "a little vague for" or "not entirely obvious to".

More alternative expressions

Phrases that express similar concepts, ordered by semantic similarity:

a little vague for

Replaces "unclear" with "vague" and uses "for" to indicate the recipient of the vagueness.

partially ambiguous to

Substitutes "unclear" with "ambiguous" and adds emphasis with "partially."

not entirely obvious to

Uses a more descriptive phrase for "unclear", focusing on a lack of obviousness.

remains a bit murky for

Employs "murky" to suggest obscurity and uses "for" to indicate the recipient.

a touch confusing for

Replaces "unclear" with "confusing" and softens the statement with "a touch".

not fully understood by

Focuses on a lack of complete comprehension.

slightly puzzling to

Uses "puzzling" to suggest a sense of bewilderment.

a little bit baffling for

Replaces "unclear" with "baffling" and includes "a little bit" for emphasis.

not altogether clear to

Uses "altogether" to provide emphasis that something is not completely clear.

somewhat opaque to

Employs "opaque" to suggest something that is difficult to see through or understand.

FAQs

How can I use "somewhat unclear to" in a sentence?

You can use "somewhat unclear to" to express that something isn't entirely understood by someone, for example, "The instructions were somewhat unclear to the new employees".

What's a more formal alternative to "somewhat unclear to"?

For a more formal tone, consider phrases like "not entirely obvious to" or "partially ambiguous to".

Is it correct to say "somewhat unclear for" instead of "somewhat unclear to"?

While "somewhat unclear for" might be used in informal contexts, "somewhat unclear to" is generally considered more grammatically correct and widely accepted in formal writing.

What does "somewhat unclear to" imply about the degree of uncertainty?

"Somewhat unclear to" suggests a moderate level of uncertainty or confusion. It's less definite than "completely unclear" but more uncertain than "slightly ambiguous".