1
as in ignorance
a state of being disregardful or unconscious of one's surroundings, concerns, or obligations
her general obliviousness often results in her walking into walls and other hard-to-miss objects
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in unawareness
the state of being unaware or uninformed
obliviousness of a law is not an acceptable excuse for breaking it
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of obliviousness
In Aspen, Wiseman deployed this method to showcase the casual obliviousness of some of his subjects.
—
Vikram Murthi, The Atlantic, 22 Feb. 2026
Meanwhile, a stylist has had to cancel his own honeymoon due to delays in the tour, indicating both slavish, life-altering devotion to the British pop star in her coterie, but also her obliviousness to such things going on.
—Ryan Lattanzio, IndieWire, 24 Jan. 2026
Arriving empty-handed, leaving messes behind, being hours late — behaviors like these reflect obliviousness or busyness at best, or selfishness or entitlement at worst.
—Kristen Rogers, CNN Money, 25 Dec. 2025
Gentleman thief Sir Charles Lytton (David Niven) circles the prize while Inspector Jacques Clouseau (Peter Sellers) bungles the pursuit with sublime obliviousness.
—Lilah Ramzi, Vogue, 25 Oct. 2025
There is total and telling obliviousness to his giant flat-screen television, tuned to the SEC Network and a women’s soccer match between Arkansas and … Notre Dame.
—Brian Hamilton, New York Times, 27 Aug. 2025
But the flip side of that obliviousness is a tremendous ambition and a sort of mad optimism.
—Seth Abramovitch, HollywoodReporter, 14 Aug. 2025
The disgust stems both from that aura of obliviousness and from a retrospective knowledge that the sincerity of late-two-thousands indie music was quickly co-opted into a more commercial version of itself.
—Kyle Chayka, New Yorker, 13 Aug. 2025
Vikram Murthi, The Atlantic, 22 Feb. 2026
Meanwhile, a stylist has had to cancel his own honeymoon due to delays in the tour, indicating both slavish, life-altering devotion to the British pop star in her coterie, but also her obliviousness to such things going on.
—Ryan Lattanzio, IndieWire, 24 Jan. 2026
Arriving empty-handed, leaving messes behind, being hours late — behaviors like these reflect obliviousness or busyness at best, or selfishness or entitlement at worst.
—Kristen Rogers, CNN Money, 25 Dec. 2025
Gentleman thief Sir Charles Lytton (David Niven) circles the prize while Inspector Jacques Clouseau (Peter Sellers) bungles the pursuit with sublime obliviousness.
—Lilah Ramzi, Vogue, 25 Oct. 2025
There is total and telling obliviousness to his giant flat-screen television, tuned to the SEC Network and a women’s soccer match between Arkansas and … Notre Dame.
—Brian Hamilton, New York Times, 27 Aug. 2025
But the flip side of that obliviousness is a tremendous ambition and a sort of mad optimism.
—Seth Abramovitch, HollywoodReporter, 14 Aug. 2025
The disgust stems both from that aura of obliviousness and from a retrospective knowledge that the sincerity of late-two-thousands indie music was quickly co-opted into a more commercial version of itself.
—Kyle Chayka, New Yorker, 13 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for obliviousness
Noun
-
That is why the spirit of the most racist president in the last 125 years must be remembered so the hate and ignorance can never be repeated.—
Gary Franks,
Hartford Courant,
20 Feb. 2026
-
Mehdi Tafti, a neurophysiologist and a geneticist, said that the unsolved mystery of short sleepers reveals our ignorance about how sleep works.—
Shayla Love,
New Yorker,
18 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
The condition can cause blurred and obscured vision, while more serious cases can result in sudden permanent vision loss or blindness.—
Taijuan Moorman,
USA Today,
19 Feb. 2026
-
Proceeds support Vision of Children’s mission to cure childhood hereditary blindness and improve quality of life, according to a news release.—
Dawn Giangiulio,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
17 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
What these succulents don’t handle well is overwatering, so don’t think that giving them a little extra to make up for forgetfulness will pay off.—
Karen Brewer Grossman,
Southern Living,
8 Feb. 2026
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Running gags include Moses’ age, certain players’ penchant for forgetfulness and star receiver Stefon Diggs’ proclivity for procreation.—
Michael Silver,
New York Times,
5 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
All of this culminates in a stunning sequence set in a rundown hospital, where the majority of the ensemble returns, and is forced into further moral dilemmas under the threat of oblivion, in a race-against-the-clock finale shot in enrapturing long takes.—
Siddhant Adlakha,
Variety,
21 Feb. 2026
-
The phrase, part of one of Banks’s most famous ‘Ty-rade’s against contestant Tiffany Richardson in Cycle 4, has been memed into oblivion.—
Bailey Bujnosek,
InStyle,
17 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Obliviousness.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/obliviousness. Accessed 25 Feb. 2026.
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