ignoramus
noun
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Ignoramus is the title of a farce by George Ruggle (1575-1622) that was first produced in 1615. The title character, whose name in Latin literally means "we are ignorant of," is a lawyer who fancies himself to be quite clever but is actually foolish and ignorant. Ruggle may have been inspired in his choice of the name by a proceeding in the English judicial system: the term ignoramus was written on bills of indictment when the evidence presented seemed insufficient to justify prosecution. In these cases ignoramus indicated "we take no notice of (i.e., we do not recognize) this indictment." Such a reference would have been most appropriate for Ruggle's satire of the judiciary.
Examples of ignoramus in a Sentence
Joe Reid, Vulture, 30 Jan. 2025
And finally, there is Remy (Guillaume Cyr), a well-meaning security guard at the Quebec Maple Association who is a bit of an ignoramus.
—Aramide Tinubu, Variety, 6 Dec. 2024
Under the Tories’ watch, the prime minister’s residence at 10 Downing Street in London was occupied by a dyspeptic culture warrior (Theresa May), who was succeeded by a fustian blowhard (Boris Johnson), who begot an economic ignoramus (Liz Truss).
—Lee Hockstader, Washington Post, 5 July 2024
Don’t let demagogues and blowhards and ignoramuses tell you otherwise.
—Jay Nordlinger, National Review, 19 June 2024
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Cite this Entry
“Ignoramus.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/ignoramus. Accessed 27 Feb. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
ignoramus
noun
from Ignoramus, name of a character in a play
Legal Definition
ignoramus
noun
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