Standard Lemma guide

unwisdom

noun · 3 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.

  • Received-Pronunciation: /(ˌ)ʌnˈwɪzdəm/
  • Southern-England: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
  • General-American: /ˌʌnˈwɪzdəm/
  • rhymes with -ɪzdəm

1

noun

Meaning 1

Lack of wisdom; unwise action or conduct; folly, foolishness.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: uncountable

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: ignorance, stupidity

Antonyms: wisdom, acuity, astuteness, clairvoyance, discernment, discrimination, gumption, insight, nous, penetration, perspicacity, prudence, sagaciousness, sagacity, sageliness, sageness, sapience, savvy, sharpness, sophy, understanding, wiseness, wit

2

noun

Meaning 2

An instance of a lack of wisdom; a foolish act.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: countable, uncountable

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

3

noun

Meaning 3

A foolish or unwise being or force.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: countable, rare, uncountable

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

History

Etymology

PIE word *né From Middle English unwisdom (“lack of wisdom, foolishness; an instance of this”), from Old English unwīsdōm, from un- (prefix denoting absence or negation of something) + wīsdōm (“wisdom”) (from Proto-Germanic *wīsadōmaz (“wise judgment, wisdom”), from *wīsaz (“knowledgeable, wise”) (ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *weyd- (“to know; to see”)) + *-dōmaz (suffix forming nouns denoting the condition or state of [the suffixed word]) (ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *dheh1- (“to do; to place, put”))). The word was apparently obsolete in the 18th century, but was revived from the 19th century and possibly popularized by its use in the works of the Scottish author and philosopher Thomas Carlyle (1795–1881): see the quotations. By surface analysis, un- (prefix denoting a lack of something) + wisdom.

Across languages

Translations

1 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Finnish: epäviisas olento — foolish or unwise being or force