“Ignorant” does mean wilfully ignorant. It doesn’t just mean uninformed.
To be vacant is to have been vacated.
To be an applicant is to have applied.
To be a claimant is to have made a claim.
And to be ignorant is to have ignored something.
(Of course, not all “-ant” words seem to stand alone without their suffix–at least, not in today’s vernacular. Does an arrogant person arrog? Does a fragrant flower frag? Rob Words might have more to say about the vestigial origins of some of these.)
Can’t wait to learn how I might just be ignorant about this (by my definition or the “real” one).
But I think one of the examples I picked has finally talked me out of this. I would happily use “vacant” to also describe a place that has never been occupied, so it didn’t require vacating to be vacant. In that case, vacate means to make vacant, not vice versa. I’ll apply that to ignore/ignorant, and I think I finally understand how people have been so comfortable with that definition.
“Ignorant” does mean wilfully ignorant. It doesn’t just mean uninformed.
To be vacant is to have been vacated.
To be an applicant is to have applied.
To be a claimant is to have made a claim.
And to be ignorant is to have ignored something.
(Of course, not all “-ant” words seem to stand alone without their suffix–at least, not in today’s vernacular. Does an arrogant person arrog? Does a fragrant flower frag? Rob Words might have more to say about the vestigial origins of some of these.)
Can’t wait to learn how I might just be ignorant about this (by my definition or the “real” one).
You have described the difference between ignorant and willfully ignorant.
To ignore is always willful, isn’t it?
But I think one of the examples I picked has finally talked me out of this. I would happily use “vacant” to also describe a place that has never been occupied, so it didn’t require vacating to be vacant. In that case, vacate means to make vacant, not vice versa. I’ll apply that to ignore/ignorant, and I think I finally understand how people have been so comfortable with that definition.