ignoramus

[ ig-nuh-rey-muhs, -ram-uhs ]
/ ˌɪg nəˈreɪ məs, -ˈræm əs /
SEE SYNONYMS FOR ignoramus ON THESAURUS.COM

noun, plural ig·no·ra·mus·es.

an extremely ignorant person.

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Origin of ignoramus

1570–80; <Latin ignōrāmus we ignore (1st person plural present indicative of ignōrāre to be ignorant of, ignore); hence name of an ignorant lawyer in the play Ignoramus (1615) by the English playwright G. Ruggle, whence current sense

Words nearby ignoramus

ignition system, ignitron, ignoble, ignominious, ignominy, ignoramus, ignorance, Ignorance is bliss, ignorant, ignoratio elenchi, ignore
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020

Words related to ignoramus

fool, dunce, idiot, blockhead, imbecile, moron, dimwit, know-nothing, numbskull

Example sentences from the Web for ignoramus

British Dictionary definitions for ignoramus

ignoramus
/ (ˌɪɡnəˈreɪməs) /

noun plural -muses

an ignorant person; fool

Word Origin for ignoramus

C16: from legal Latin, literally: we have no knowledge of, from Latin ignōrāre to be ignorant of; see ignore; modern usage originated from the use of Ignoramus as the name of an unlettered lawyer in a play by G. Ruggle, 17th-century English dramatist
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012