oblivious
Americanadjective
-
unmindful; unconscious; unaware (usually followed by of orto ).
She was oblivious of his admiration.
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forgetful; without remembrance or memory.
oblivious of my former failure.
-
Archaic. inducing forgetfulness.
adjective
Usage
It was formerly considered incorrect to use oblivious to mean unaware , but this use is now acceptable
Related Words
See absent-minded.
Other Word Forms
- obliviously adverb
- obliviousness noun
- self-oblivious adjective
- semioblivious adjective
- semiobliviously adverb
- unoblivious adjective
- unobliviously adverb
Etymology
Origin of oblivious
First recorded in 1400–50; late Middle English, from Latin oblīviōsus “forgetful,” equivalent to oblīvī(scī) “to forget” + -ōsus -ous ( def. )
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.
Except Paul isn’t magic; she waves her red flags high and proud, and the good folks at ABC, Hulu and Disney charged at them with the oblivious desperation of so many trapped, maddened bulls.
From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 21, 2026
“But on any given day, financial investors are in fact oblivious to fundamental shifts in global alignments or worrying attacks on U.S. institutions,” he writes.
From Barron's • Jan. 14, 2026
The rest of the country seems oblivious to the silver tsunami on the horizon.
From MarketWatch • Jan. 9, 2026
An airship crashes into the ocean with three golfers apparently oblivious as they hole out on a seaside course.
From BBC • Dec. 27, 2025
Halsey went on, seemingly oblivious, and for a few moments, Magdalys lost herself in the tumbling speech, its highs and lows and wishes and fears.
From "Dactyl Hill Squad" by Daniel José Older
Definitions 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.
