clueless

adjective

clue·​less ˈklü-ləs 

1

: having or providing no clue

a clueless case for the police to solve

2

: completely or hopelessly bewildered, unaware, ignorant, or foolish

clueless about what they want

cluelessly adverb

I played dumb. I have arrived at a point in my life where I can perform this stunt with aplomb. "What do you mean?" I asked, as cluelessly as I knew how.

—Steve Friedman

cluelessness noun

Mowrey is also trying to make a deer hunter of Bentley, whose cluelessness as an outdoors-man is a rich source of amusement to his country-boy crony.

—Austin Murphy

Synonyms

• ignorant
• incognizant
• innocent
• insensible
• nescient
• oblivious
• unacquainted
• unaware
• unconscious
• uninformed
• unknowing
• unmindful
• unwitting

Examples of clueless in a Sentence

When it comes to computers, I'm clueless.

They were clueless about what to do.

Recent Examples on the Web

The mood of the film is wistful, a little sad, but ultimately quietly galvanizing, thanks in large part to the actors: Palmi Kormákur plays the young Kristofer as guileless but not clueless, feeling his way along as young people do. —Stephanie Zacharek, TIME, 12 July 2024

Wayne maintained a clueless demeanor, insisting that he was not told about any official plans with the Cash Money group. —Marc Griffin, VIBE.com, 5 July 2024

The traffic, parking, and clueless tourist hordes only added to the slump. —Nicolas Stecher, Robb Report, 2 July 2024

Each episode introduces a new game, but the twist is that the three comedian contestants are clueless about the rules until the game begins. —Clayton Davis, Variety, 8 May 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1743, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Kids Definition

clueless

adjective

clue·​less ˈklü-ləs 

: having or providing no clue