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
• unaware
• oblivious

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

And Buckley is able to improve his reputation beyond being a clueless store clerk. —Daniel Dockery, Vulture, 7 July 2025

The fathers, meanwhile, are various degrees of awkward, if not clueless. —David L. Coddon, San Diego Union-Tribune, 16 June 2025

Here is a teaser trailer: The film’s focus is on these people who live far from the action, basically clueless to the Holocaust and other atrocities by Germany during the war that will now cast shame on the country. —Pete Hammond, Deadline, 22 May 2025

The pair also teamed up for three movies based on Varney’s clueless Ernest character. Also a successful artist, Sartain spent time in New York City working as an assistant to illustrator Paul Davis, according to several reports. —Brian Niemietz, New York Daily News, 20 June 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1743, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for clueless

• shoeless
• viewless

Kids Definition

clueless

adjective

clue·​less ˈklü-ləs 

: having or providing no clue