oblivious

adjective

obliv·​i·​ous ə-ˈbli-vē-əs How to pronounce oblivious (audio)
1
: lacking remembrance, memory, or mindful attention
2
: lacking active conscious knowledge or awareness
usually used with of or to
obliviously adverb
obliviousness noun

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How to Use Oblivious in a Sentence: does it go with 'of' or 'to'?

Oblivious usually has to do with not being conscious or aware of someone or something. When used with this meaning, it can be followed by either to or of:

The cat had crept in silently, and we were oblivious to its presence in the room.

There was no chance that anyone could be oblivious of the dog, though; it greeted everyone in the room with frisky leaps.

Oblivious can also have to do with forgetfulness, and when it's used this way, it is often followed by of (but not to):

The child had brought in a snake she'd discovered in the garden, oblivious of the promise she'd made to leave all found creatures outside.

Whatever meaning of oblivious you choose to use, the noun that correlates with this adjective is obliviousness:

Our obliviousness to the cat's presence in the room was quickly corrected by the dog's discovery of the cat under the chair.

The noun oblivion is related to both, of course, but it is not the noun form of oblivious.

Examples of oblivious in a Sentence

They were pushing and shouting and oblivious to anyone not in their group. P. J. O'Rourke, Rolling Stone, 14 Nov. 1996
Prentice looked up from his food, which he had been steadily shovelling in, completely oblivious of everyone. Antonya Nelson, New Yorker, 9 Nov. 1992
Oblivious of any previous decisions not to stand together …  , the three stood in a tight group … Doris Lessing, The Good Terrorist, 1985
Father was oblivious to the man's speculative notice of his wife. E. L. Doctorow, Ragtime, 1974
She rested now, frankly and fairly, in the shelter of his arms, and both were oblivious to the gale that rushed past them in quicker and stronger blasts. Jack London, Burning Daylight, 1910
the out-of-state motorist claimed to be oblivious of the local speed limit, even though the signs must have been hard to miss
Recent Examples on the Web By 9 o’clock that evening, Reinhardt was seriously impressed—and apparently oblivious to the fact that the man before him was playing a role within a role. Tomas Weber, Smithsonian Magazine, 24 Oct. 2024 The Lilliputian sellers regularly fail to do damage when matched with the oblivious index money. Jim Cramer, CNBC, 20 Oct. 2024 Now in post-production, the film stars Peretti as Juan Debré, an actor who has played the hero of a TV series for his entire career, oblivious to his true self. John Hopewell, Variety, 1 Oct. 2024 He’s curled up on a blue velvet chair, sleeping in a sunbeam, oblivious to the wild creatures that share these streets with us. Ali Martin, The Christian Science Monitor, 27 Sep. 2024 See all Example Sentences for oblivious 

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'oblivious.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Middle English, borrowed from Latin oblīviōsus, from oblīvi-, base of oblīviōn-, oblīviō "state of forgetting, dismissal from the memory" + -ōsus -ous — more at oblivion

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of oblivious was in the 15th century

Dictionary Entries Near oblivious

Cite this Entry

“Oblivious.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/oblivious. Accessed 31 Oct. 2024.

Kids Definition

oblivious

adjective
obliv·​i·​ous ə-ˈbliv-ē-əs How to pronounce oblivious (audio)
ō-,
ä-
: not being conscious or aware
oblivious to the danger
oblivious of the crowd
obliviously adverb
obliviousness noun

More from Merriam-Webster on oblivious

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