different between blockhead vs ignoramus

English

Alternative forms

• block head, block-head

Etymology

1549, block (“n.”) +? head.

Pronunciation

Noun

blockhead (plural blockheads)

1. (colloquial) A stupid person.
2. A sideshow performer who hammers nails or similar items through his or her nostril into the nasal cavity; human blockhead.

Synonyms

• See also Thesaurus:idiot

Derived terms

• blockheaded
• blockheadess

Translations

Verb

blockhead (third-person singular simple present blockheads, present participle blockheading, simple past and past participle blockheaded)

1. To perform as a human blockhead.
2. (rare) To behave in a stupid manner.

Anagrams

• headblock

English

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /??n???e?m?s/
• Rhymes: -e?m?s

Etymology 1

After the ignorant lawyer Ignoramus, the titular character in the 1615 play Ignoramus by the English playwright Georges Ruggle; from Latin ign?r?mus (“we do not know, we are ignorant of”), the first-person plural present active indicative of ign?r? (“I do not know, I am unacquainted with, I am ignorant of”).

Alternative forms

• ignoramous

Noun

ignoramus (plural ignoramuses)

1. A totally ignorant person—unknowledgeable, uneducated, or uninformed; a fool.

Usage notes

The hyper-correct plural form ignorami is seen by most as humorous and non-standard, as the word derives from a Latin verb, not from a noun.

Synonyms

• See also Thesaurus:ignoramus

Translations

Etymology 2

Directly from Latin ign?r?mus (“we do not know”).

Noun

ignoramus (plural ignoramuses)

1. (law, dated) A grand jury's ruling on an indictment when the evidence is determined to be insufficient to send the case to trial.

Anagrams

• origanums

Latin

Verb

ign?r?mus

1. first-person plural present active indicative of ign?r?