Definition of benighted
1 : overtaken by darkness or night Benighted travellers … have seen his midnight candle glimmering. — W. B. Yeats
2 : existing in a state of intellectual, moral, or social darkness : unenlightened spreading their message among these poor benighted people a strange, benighted country
benightedly
adverbbenightedness
nounExplore M-W
Examples of benighted in a Sentence
the poor benighted souls who do not know the joys of reading
Recent Examples of benighted from the Web
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Eventually, months later, about three quarters of the benighted area has power for at least ten hours a day.
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All problematic, as these benighted films contain no cowboys.
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The article framed Louis alongside JD Vance, whose rust belt memoir, Hillbilly Elegy: A Memoir of a Family and Culture in Crisis, chronicles his upbringing in a benighted part of Ohio.
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For this city dweller is no slick deceiver out of Molière or Dickens, but a benighted idiot in his own right.
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Hall’s real-life husband, Clifton Hall, also is moving in the rather thankless role of Diana’s well-meaning but benighted husband, Dan.
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If Friday’s events left you shaken by President Donald Trump’s benighted view of America and his vision to transform it, Saturday’s were the antidote.
These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'benighted.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
First Known Use of benighted
15th century
BENIGHTED Defined for English Language Learners
benighted
playDefinition of benighted for English Language Learners
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: having no knowledge or education
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