ignorant

adjective

1)

the plight of these ignorant children should be an international concern

Syn:

uneducated, unknowledgeable, untaught, unschooled, untutored, untrained, illiterate, unlettered, unlearned, unread, uninformed, unenlightened, benighted; inexperienced, unworldly, unsophisticated

Ant:

educated

2)

they were ignorant of working-class life

Syn:

without knowledge of, unaware of, unconscious of, oblivious to, incognizant of, unfamiliar with, unacquainted with, uninformed about, ill-informed about, unenlightened about, unconversant with, inexperienced in/with, naive about, green about; informal in the dark about, clueless about

Ant:

knowledgeable

••

ignorant, illiterate, uneducated, uninformed, unlearned, unlettered, untutored

Someone who knows nothing about growing things might be called ignorant by a farmer who never went to high school but has spent his life in the fields. Although all of these adjectives refer to a lack of knowledge, ignorant refers to a lack of knowledge in general (a foolish, ignorant person) or to a lack of knowledge of some particular subject (ignorant of the fine points of financial management). A professor of art history might refer to someone who doesn't know how to look at a painting as uneducated or untutored, both of which refer to a lack of formal education in schools (she was very bright but basically uneducated, and completely untutored in the fine arts). Someone who cannot read or write is illiterate, a term that may also denote a failure to display civility or cultivated behavior (the professor routinely referred to his students as illiterate louts). Someone who is unlettered lacks a knowledge of fine literature (a scientist who was highly trained but unlettered); it also implies being able to read and write, but with no skill in either of these areas. Unlearned is similar to ignorant in that it refers to a lack of learning in general or in a specific subject (an unlearned man who managed to become a millionaire), but it does not carry the same negative connotations. Uninformed refers to a lack of definite information or data. For example, one can be highly intelligent and well educated but still uninformed about the latest developments in earthquake prediction.