Ignorant - ignore

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The original meaning of the verb to ignore in Latin (as it still is in French) is 'not to know'. In modern English, this verb is used to mean 'deliberately not to notice' - e.g. a mother might ignore her child's bad behaviour, not answering until the child behaves politely; or a teacher might ignore the criticisms of a student who seems to be thinking along unproductive lines.

The older meaning still applies with the adjective ignorant. A person who is ignorant of something does not know about it. Students should not be ignorant of elementary facts in their subjects - though many are. (Why else are they students? They have come to their University in order to learn the things of which they are ignorant. If they were not ignorant, there would be little point in trying to learn.)

In the local dialect of Hull, and other places, ignorant has a rather different meaning which should not be used in academic writing. This is 'impolite', 'discourteous' or 'rude'. (I suspect it derives from the offence we feel when people do not notice us, and we feel they are doing it deliberately - that they are ignoring us. The response in Hull is often 'Don't be so ignorant.')