ignore
Americanverb (used with object)
-
ignores,
present (3rd person singular)
-
ignored,
past participle, past
-
ignoring
present participle
verb
noun
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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ignorernoun
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ignorableadjective
-
unignorableadjective
-
unignoredadjective
-
unignoringadjective
-
well-ignoredadjective
-
unignorablyadverb
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
ignoresimple
-
ignoressimple
-
have ignoredperfect
-
has ignoredperfect
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am ignoringprogressive
-
are ignoringprogressive
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is ignoringprogressive
-
have been ignoringperfect progressive
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has been ignoringperfect progressive
Past
-
ignoredsimple
-
had ignoredperfect
-
was ignoringprogressive
-
were ignoringprogressive
-
had been ignoringperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of ignore
First recorded in 1605–15; from Latin ignōrāre “to not know, disregard,” verb derivative of ignārus “ignorant, unaware” (with -ō- perhaps from ignōtus “unknown”), equivalent to in- in- 3 + gnārus “knowing, acquainted (with)”; akin to (g)nōscere “to know 1 ”
Explanation
To ignore something is to disregard it. If you ignore the rules of grammar, you're likely to be misunderstood. It's easy to see the relationship between ignore and a word such as ignorant. To be ignorant of something is to know nothing about it. A good way to be ignorant about something is to ignore it. In other words, if you want to be ignorant about a certain subject—that is, if you want to know nothing about it—then by all means ignore it. Pay it no mind.
Vocabulary lists containing ignore
Michelle Obama's Speech at the 2016 DNC
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Sula
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"Indian Summer Sun" and "Almost Evenly Divided"
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
“This administration will not ignore the rule of law.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 14, 2026
"These warnings need to be reliable, hard to ignore, and always up to date."
From Barron's ● Oct. 13, 2026
Still, the economic realities are hard to ignore, he said.
From BBC ● Oct. 11, 2026
Still, heating-oil prices near record highs are hard to ignore.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 10, 2026
I decided to continue with my reading and ignore her.
From "The Detective's Assistant" by Kate Hannigan
It ignores cash costs directly tied to employee stock awards.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 9, 2026
“It ignores or virtually ignores most of the major events in American history,” he wrote.
From Salon ● Sep. 25, 2026
The guy then ignores said friend—only to learn that those crypto holdings are going to the moon while his own investments are going nowhere.
From Slate ● Sep. 20, 2026
In a statement shared with US media, lawyers for Black called the House move an "outrageous action that ignores the facts and the truth about Mr. Black".
From BBC ● Sep. 16, 2026
Mr. Jones ignores me, positioning sports equipment for the after-school program.
From "Black Brother, Black Brother" by Jewell Parker Rhodes
Meanwhile, some of the more mundane questions get ignored.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 16, 2026
The message from 1809 -- detailing French and allied troops' positions in two dozen lines of symbols, numbers and letters -- had lain ignored in an online academic archive.
From Barron's ● Oct. 16, 2026
And, Gruber said, they want to be engaged with, not ignored.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 11, 2026
Mr. Klein rightly points out that Ms. Hannah-Jones ignored the availability of high-performing charter schools as an option for New York City families who are unhappy with their neighborhood schools.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 8, 2026
But the problem with time bombs, I thought gloomily, was that eventually they exploded whether you ignored them or not.
From "Glitch" by Laura Martin
Other problems arise from overeager attempts to portray Philadelphia as the birthplace of various advancements while ignoring other places’ possible claims.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 16, 2026
But she was absorbed, ignoring her own life.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 16, 2026
Steven Jon Kaplan sees a completely irrational stock market right now, and investors ignoring a perfectly safe way to play that.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 15, 2026
Like many seniors who live in homes with more than one story, you have a problem that won’t go away by ignoring it.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 29, 2026
I don’t know if the thudding downpour masks my voice or if Emma is back to ignoring me.
From "South of Somewhere" by Kalena Miller
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Get a wordDefinitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
