Skip to main content
unintelligence

unintelligence

7.9
A lack of knowledge or needed information about something
  • noun
  • /ˌʌnɪnˈtɛlɪdʒəns/
translation icon : ignorancia
  • Her unintelligence about basic facts was surprising, considering her experience in the field.

Examples

  • The unintelligence displayed in his arguments showed a lack of understanding on the topic.

  • I just took him into the unintelligence of the thinking and asked him a couple of questions to see what was really true for him.

  • I just took him into the unintelligence of the thinking and asked him a couple of questions to see what was really true for him.

  • Inexperience, unintelligence, and weak character are but symptoms of deep-seated traits that govern all he does or says.

    Blog text (1)
  • The Greeks did not describe anyone as barbarians on account of their skin color, and Snowden says there is no evidence that blacks were systematically associated with unintelligence.

    Academic text (1995)
  • The unintelligence of the community regarding health issues contributed to the spread of misinformation.

Synonyms

ignorance
vsunintelligence
316 3.9

Not knowing about something or how it works

emphasizes absence of relevant information rather than low mental ability
cluelessness
vsunintelligence
5 4.2

Not knowing what to do or how something works

refers instead to missing relevant information rather than poor mental power
incomprehension
vsunintelligence
4 6.9

A feeling of not being able to understand something

covers general lack of awareness and missing relevant information
incognizance
vsunintelligence
9.9

Not knowing about something

focuses on missing relevant information rather than weak thinking ability
unknowingness
vsunintelligence
8.6

Being unaware of something

stresses missing relevant information rather than low mental capacity
unenlightenment
vsunintelligence
9.7

A state of not knowing or understanding things

highlights absence of needed information rather than weak intellectual power
benightedness
vsunintelligence
  • Formal
9.9

A state of not knowing or understanding

frames this as missing relevant information rather than low mental ability
noncomprehension
vsunintelligence
8.1

A lack of understanding of instructions or ideas

is broader, focusing on lacking needed information rather than just understanding
unperceptiveness
vsunintelligence
9.7

A lack of noticing or understanding other people's feelings and needs

focuses on missing factual knowledge rather than low empathy or insight

Antonyms

418 3.0

Ability to learn, understand, and use knowledge to solve problems

How Informed

expertise
302 4.9
knowledge
1.0
awareness
336 3.2
unintelligence
7.9

Surface Forms

Morphology

unintelligence = unintelligent (semi-transparent) = un + intelligence

Formation from the adjective 'unintelligent' to the noun with '-ence' is a regular, predictable derivation.

Etymology

Unintelligence is formed from un- 'not' and intelligence 'understanding' or 'knowledge'. So, in one meaning it describes 'not having the needed information or awareness', which helps explain why it can mean a lack of relevant knowledge rather than low mental ability.