oblivious
- 01 B2 Upper Intermediate
not noticing something, or not being aware of what is happening around you.
lacking conscious awareness; unmindful or unconscious of surroundings or specific circumstances.
Simple“He was so busy on his phone that he was oblivious to the rain.”
In context“Absorbed in her research, she remained entirely oblivious to the heated argument taking place just a few feet away from her desk.”
UsageUsually followed by the preposition 'to' in modern usage, though 'of' is occasionally found in older texts.
PitfallHe was oblivious about the danger. He was oblivious to the danger.In modern English, 'oblivious' is almost always followed by the preposition 'to'.
Synonyms - 02 C1 Advanced
forgetting things easily or not remembering the past.
characterised by or promoting forgetfulness; no longer mindful of the past.
Simple“In his old age, he became oblivious of the many awards he had won.”
In context“The poet described a peaceful, oblivious sleep that allowed the weary soldier to forget the horrors of the previous day.”
UsageIn this sense, the word is more frequently paired with 'of' than 'to'.
Teacher's tipThis sense is rare in modern conversation; students will mostly encounter it in 19th-century literature or formal poetry.
“Yet writers and producers knew that children were not oblivious – that even the 2- to 4-year-olds comprising the core “Sesame Street” audience had some sense of what was going on.”
“At least the pair are united in caring for their small son; the concern they devote to a mostly oblivious child is heartrending.”
From Middle English oblivious, from Latin oblīviōsus (“forgetful, oblivious”), formed from oblīvium (“forgetfulness, oblivion”) + -ōsus (“full of, overly, prone to”), from oblīvīscor (“to forget”).
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.