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uneducated

uneducated

56 2.8
A person who has little or no schooling
  • adjective
  • /ˌʌnˈɛdʒʊˌkeɪtɪd/
translation icon : sin estudios
  • Half the young couples are uneducated and cannot read one book on child psychology.
  • uneducated people
  • educated and uneducated
  • uneducated girls

It can be unemployed, uneducated, poor or fat.

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Examples

  • Many uneducated individuals struggle to find well-paying jobs due to their lack of skills.

  • And so as a society, we are so uneducated about how our own body works.

  • Labor in rural areas continues to be largely uneducated and has low levels of productivity.

    Academic text (2002)
  • The people who are hungry need bread, uneducated people need knowledge, and sick people need hospitals.

    Academic text (1992)
  • Children enter kindergarten "uneducated" and come out of 12th grade "educated."

    Academic text (2017)
  • Literacy has long been used to differentiate educated from uneducated people in Kenya.

    Academic text (2008)
  • Society is set up, I mean sadly, in such a way that it's the poor and uneducated who suffer the main impact of natural and man-made disasters.

  • The community implemented programs to support uneducated adults seeking better job opportunities.

  • Uneducated people may have valuable life experiences, even if they lack formal qualifications.

Synonyms

ignorant
vsuneducated
367 3.7

Not knowing about something or how it works

means lacking formal education and training rather than merely missing facts
illiterate
vsuneducated
16 4.8

Not knowing much about a subject

refers to a general absence of formal schooling rather than one topic lack
unenlightened
vsuneducated
6 7.0

Not knowing or understanding important information

refers to lacking formal education rather than simply lacking awareness or insight
undereducated
vsuneducated
4 4.2

Not having enough schooling to learn basic reading and math

means lacking formal education entirely rather than having only poor schooling
unschooled
vsuneducated
3 5.5

A person who has no formal education

can mean lacking good formal education rather than complete absence of schooling
untutored
vsuneducated
3 7.8

Having no formal schooling or lessons

can refer to lacking good formal education rather than only missing lessons
unlettered
vsuneducated
1 8.9

People who cannot read or write

describes broad lack of formal education rather than only missing literacy skills
untaught
vsuneducated
1 6.8

A person who has not had school or lessons

can mean a broader lack of formal education rather than only missing instruction
unknowledgeable
vsuneducated
1 7.1

Not knowing much about a subject

emphasizes missing formal education and training rather than only being uninformed
unlearned
vsuneducated
1 7.7

A person with little education or knowledge about a subject

stresses lack of formal schooling more than simply being uninformed
uninstructed
vsuneducated
6.9

Someone who has no training or basic knowledge about a subject

names a broader lack of formal education rather than only missing training

Antonyms

36 3.2

A person who has a good education and a lot of knowledge

3.7

Someone who knows a lot about a subject because they have the facts

Compounds

uneducated person
  • Offensive
3 3.0

A person who has little or no schooling

How Educated

well-educated
40 3.9
educated
36 3.2
uneducated
56 2.8
illiterate
29 3.7

Surface Forms

uneducated positive

Morphology

uneducated = educated (transparent) = un + educate + ed

The prefix 'un-' clearly negates the adjective 'educated', making the meaning straightforward.

Etymology

Uneducated starts with un- meaning 'not' and the part educate meaning 'to teach' or 'bring up'. So uneducated describes someone who has 'not had formal teaching or training'.