To hate when people use the word 'ignorant' to mean 'rude'?

[Draineddraineddrained]

Ignorant doesn't mean rude. It doesn't mean discourteous. It doesn't mean thoughtless. It is a common, simple word. It has a specific meaning. So whyyy do so many people use it wrong??? It is ACTUALLY ignorant and it drives me crazy!

Sorry. Just saw it in another thread and got in a temper. I'll go and meditate or something.

I hear you, OP!

I think people believe it means to ignore.

I think they mean that people are ignorant of how to behave properly?

Agreed. I'm used to it now but I used to find it really jarring when people used in to mean rude as it just didn't make sense to me. In a similar vein, the use of disrespect as a verb: "he disrespected me", shudder!

I'm in my sixties and grew up in South London where this use of 'ignorant' is very common. It has pissed me off for the best part of fifty years. I used to argue with my friends about it but now I just let it go - but not without an inner wince.

I can see how someone might suggest an ignorant MP is being rude. At some point ignorance can/does become rudeness. But yanbu in the big scheme of things. Words and meaning do evolve though.

It's shorthand for ignorance of normal rules and manners.

Lack of awareness.

@Howdoisawwithnosaw

Possibly. But we have other more specific words for that! Like rude, discourteous, ill-bred, insensitive.... I suppose you COULD use ignorant in that sense but it still makes me irrationally cross 😆

Dictionary definitions do state 'not polite or showing respect' as an informal, secondary definition.

Can someone use it in correct context so I know if I'm using it correctly?!

I hate it too!!! In the area my husband lives people use ignorant as meaning ignored as well ‘I wasn’t being ignorant earlier I just didn’t see your call’ ‘not being ignorant replying to messages I’ve lost my phone’ honestly it makes me want to scream. It means something completely different!!!!!!

dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/ignorant

@thistimelastweek

It's shorthand for ignorance of normal rules and manners.

Lack of awareness.

Oh, I'm good then.

I agree OP.

@4pmwinetimebebeh 😱😱😱 oh my lord. So much worse!

Hmm.. (I do agree with you though OP).

Also, I hate it being used as an insult. It just means you don't know something. Theres loads of stuff I'm ignorant of.

Well......lots of English speaking people seem to think brought means ‘bought’ vice versa.
The same people think affect means ‘effect’.

These are mistakes made by indigenous Brits and not foreigners. Foreigners are taught the English language in a very formal way and their grammatical errors are very different to the above and present differently e.g mixing present and past tenses up. The above examples are borne out of slang, lazy speech and people just not reading good texts anymore, it’s all phone texting and silly abbreviations.

Where I live ( SE London) if I said she’s an ignorant cow/ he’s an ignorant sod people would know exactly what I meant.

Ignorant: lacking knowledge or awareness in general; uneducated or unsophisticated.

It does mean rude, lacking knowledge or awareness (of manners)...

I don't use it like that either,but it's not wrong.

Helpful Meditation Thread

@Howdoisawwithnosaw

I think they mean that people are ignorant of how to behave properly?

I think this is what it means. Ignorant of good manners.

@loveisagirlnameddaisy

Informal seems to me like in this case it means "incorrect usage" though and the example given is weird as the "lout" part covers the impolite/disrespect thing more than the "ignorant" does - you could be a lout who was not ignorant but you can't be a lout who is respectful and polite. Yes I am now arguing with the dictionary 😆

I instinctively hate it too, but apparently it's a legitimate alternative meaning so I bite my tongue.

I've occasionally seen people get cross the other way round. "How dare you call me ignorant! - I was perfectly polite when I asked you whether I'd need a passport to travel to Wales!"

The meaning of words changes over time. So in Shakespeare times 'I'm coming presently' meant now. These days it means soon.
It's accepted in common use that ignorant now means rude. That's how languages evolve.
You've got to get with the times. 😉