as in ignorance
the state of being unaware or uninformed
some intense studying rapidly remedied my unfamiliarity with the subject in time for the exam
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of unfamiliarity
The challenge is not only unfamiliarity.
—
Kristin Olson, Fortune, 19 Dec. 2025
Meanwhile, public acceptance remains limited, held back by unfamiliarity and lingering safety concerns.
—Georgina Jedikovska, Interesting Engineering, 3 Dec. 2025
To anticipate improving upon an already-staggering performance metric by nearly 20% is to acknowledge an unfamiliarity with how math works.
—Anthony Crupi, Sportico.com, 26 Nov. 2025
Maheu says that, of course, some people have also had broader issues with their decision to coparent as a group — some of it borne from unfamiliarity.
—David Chiu, PEOPLE, 29 Oct. 2025
Most of them declined to comment on Platner’s past, expressing unfamiliarity with the details of what’s become one of the hottest political stories in the country.
—David Weigel, semafor.com, 21 Oct. 2025
These players may be more susceptible to injury due to limited experience, unfamiliarity with the game or lower level of physical fitness, the study noted.
—Melissa Fleur Afshar, MSNBC Newsweek, 16 Oct. 2025
This culture of veneration coexists with a significant unfamiliarity with the document and its implications.
—Big Think, 10 Oct. 2025
As Palace struggled at times in the face of Sunderland’s defensive shield, Pino was a shining light, but there were signs of the 22-year-old’s rawness and unfamiliarity with the way his new team play.
—Matt Woosnam, New York Times, 15 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for unfamiliarity
ignorance
Noun
-
Here in the United States, the writer and filmmaker Mike Judge has garnered praise over the course of his career for getting laughs out of broken systems and absurd ignorance in American culture.—
-
In these special kinds of systems, even a minuscule amount of uncertainty in the measurement of the initial state of a system very quickly compounds into complete ignorance about its future behavior.—
Cite this Entry
“Unfamiliarity.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/unfamiliarity. Accessed 13 Jan. 2026.
Love words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share