Synonyms of ignorant

ignorant

adjective

ˈig-n(ə-)rənt 

1

as in uneducated

lacking in education or the knowledge gained from books

they may be poor, ignorant farmers, but they are not stupid

Synonyms & Similar Words

• uneducated
• dark
• inexperienced
• illiterate
• benighted
• untutored
• simple
• unschooled
• untaught
• unlearned
• unlettered
• rude
• uninstructed
• naive
• innocent
• nonliterate
• unread
• foolish
• stupid
• unknowledgeable
• naïve
• analphabetic
• uncultured
• idiotic
• dumb
• semiliterate
• unsophisticated
• artless
• functionally illiterate
• moronic
• uncultivated
• imbecile
• lowbrow
• unskilled
• innumerate
• imbecilic
• callow
• green
• untrained
• silly
• witless
• brainless
• philistine
• idiotical
• senseless
• raw

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• educated
• knowledgeable
• intelligent
• literate
• brilliant
• smart
• expert
• experienced
• well-informed
• lettered
• trained
• intellectual
• learned
• well-read
• schooled
• erudite
• scholarly
• aware
• cultured
• sophisticated
• familiar
• cultivated
• acquainted
• highbrow
• polymathic
• polymath
• polyhistoric

2

as in unaware

not informed about or aware of something

he was ignorant of their wedding plans

Synonyms & Similar Words

• unaware
• oblivious
• uninformed
• clueless
• unmindful
• unconscious
• unknowing
• in the dark
• unwitting
• uneducated
• nescient
• innocent
• unacquainted
• incognizant
• unschooled
• untaught
• insensible
• inattentive
• heedless
• absent
• absentminded
• abstracted
• inconscient

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• aware
• conscious
• informed
• acquainted
• knowing
• cognizant
• conversant
• mindful
• grounded
• taught
• educated
• knowledgeable
• hip
• up-to-date
• witting
• observant
• sensitive
• plugged-in
• schooled
• sentient
• au courant
• heedful

Synonym Chooser

How is the word ignorant distinct from other similar adjectives?

Some common synonyms of ignorant are illiterate, unlearned, unlettered, and untutored. While all these words mean "not having knowledge," ignorant may imply a general condition or it may apply to lack of knowledge or awareness of a particular thing.

an ignorant fool

ignorant of nuclear physics

When could illiterate be used to replace ignorant?

Although the words illiterate and ignorant have much in common, illiterate applies to either an absolute or a relative inability to read and write.

much of the population is still illiterate

When can unlearned be used instead of ignorant?

While the synonyms unlearned and ignorant are close in meaning, unlearned suggests ignorance of advanced subjects.

poetry not for academics but for the unlearned masses

In what contexts can unlettered take the place of ignorant?

The meanings of unlettered and ignorant largely overlap; however, unlettered implies ignorance of the knowledge gained by reading.

an allusion meaningless to the unlettered

Where would untutored be a reasonable alternative to ignorant?

The words untutored and ignorant can be used in similar contexts, but untutored may imply lack of schooling in the arts and ways of civilization.

strange monuments built by an untutored people

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of ignorant

One theory was that Trump, ignorant of the details of rare earth mining, was simply approaching the situation as a businessman might, looking for a favorable deal. —IEEE Spectrum, 7 Mar. 2025

Another director might have shied away from such minutiae or worse, be completely ignorant of them. —Josh Weiss, Forbes, 17 Mar. 2025

Consider that Mahmoud Khalil, an anti-war protester and recent graduate of Columbia University, was arrested on a Saturday night by ICE agents who appeared ignorant of his status as a legal U.S. resident and his rights thereof. —Nisha Whitehead, Orange County Register, 16 Mar. 2025

Until him, no U.S. president has been so ignorant of the lessons of history. —Bret Stephens, The Mercury News, 13 Mar. 2025