Updated on March 6, 2024
The word 'ignore' is a small but powerful part of our vocabulary. It signifies the act of disregarding or paying no attention to something or someone. This action, while sometimes necessary, can also lead to missing out on important information or connections.
Ignoring has played a significant role in various cultural contexts. For instance, in some Eastern philosophies, ignoring negative thoughts and emotions is a key aspect of mindfulness and meditation. Meanwhile, in Western culture, ignoring someone's opinions or ideas can lead to misunderstandings and conflict.
Understanding the translation of 'ignore' in different languages can provide valuable insights into how other cultures view and handle this concept. For example, in Spanish, 'ignorar' means to ignore, but in Arabic, 'تجاهل' (tajahul) can also mean to show contempt or scorn.
Below, you'll find a list of translations of 'ignore' in various languages, from French to Chinese and beyond. Explore these translations to gain a new perspective on this common yet complex word.
Afrikaans | ignoreer | ||
In Afrikaans, the word "ignoreer" also means "to disregard" or "to pay no attention to something or someone" | |||
Amharic | ችላ ማለት | ||
Hausa | watsi | ||
"Watsi" can also be used to refer to the act of giving or receiving bribes. | |||
Igbo | eleghara anya | ||
The verb "eleghara anya" derives from the noun "leghara", meaning "to look", and the postposition "anya", meaning "eyes". Thus, the literal meaning is "to look with the eyes", which has evolved to mean "to pay attention" or "to heed". | |||
Malagasy | tsinontsinona | ||
The word "tsinontsinona" is derived from the Malagasy word "sinona" meaning "to turn one's back on" or "to disregard". | |||
Nyanja (Chichewa) | kunyalanyaza | ||
"Kunyalanyaza" is an onomatopoeia formed from the sound of a person turning their back on someone when they are speaking to them. | |||
Shona | hanya | ||
The word "hanya" can also mean "to be stubborn" or "to refuse" in Shona. | |||
Somali | iska indha tir | ||
The phrase "iska indha tir" is often used with the additional phrase "ku tiir" to mean "to look away" or "to overlook". | |||
Sesotho | hlokomoloha | ||
"Hlokomoloha" is an Sesotho word that derives its meaning from the Tswana word "lokoma" which means "to turn your back on someone". | |||
Swahili | kupuuza | ||
The word 'kupuuza' is cognate to the verb 'kupooza', meaning to 'treat carelessly or with contempt'. | |||
Xhosa | ungayihoyi | ||
The Xhosa word "ungayihoyi" can also mean "to act as if something does not exist" or "to disregard completely"} | |||
Yoruba | foju | ||
Foju also means "forget" in Yoruba. | |||
Zulu | unganaki | ||
"Unga naki" has the extended meaning of ignoring or avoiding something unpleasant to the eyes or the mind. | |||
Bambara | ka na a dɔn | ||
Ewe | ɖe asi le eŋu | ||
Kinyarwanda | wirengagize | ||
Lingala | kokipe te | ||
Luganda | okwesonyiwa | ||
Sepedi | hlokomologa | ||
Twi (Akan) | yi ani | ||
Arabic | تجاهل | ||
The word "تجاهل" can also mean "pretend not to know" or "feign ignorance". | |||
Hebrew | להתעלם | ||
"התעלם", in its original biblical context, means to conceal rather than ignore, as from hiding a secret or crime. | |||
Pashto | له پامه غورځول | ||
Arabic | تجاهل | ||
The word "تجاهل" can also mean "pretend not to know" or "feign ignorance". |
Albanian | injoroj | ||
The Albanian word "injoroj" is derived from the Latin word "ignoro" which means "to not know". | |||
Basque | ez ikusi egin | ||
In Basque, "ez ikusi egin" also literally translates to "not to look at". | |||
Catalan | ignorar | ||
The Catalan word "ignorar" shares its etymology with the English word "ignore" and in certain contexts can mean "to disregard" rather than "to be unaware of". | |||
Croatian | zanemariti | ||
The Croatian word "zanemariti" is derived from the Proto-Slavic word *zanemiriti, meaning "to fall into disrepair or neglect". | |||
Danish | ignorere | ||
The word "ignorere" in Danish, like its English counterpart, can also mean "to refuse to notice". | |||
Dutch | negeren | ||
Dutch: negeren (ignorer) is related to Dutch: neger (n****) but the words have different historical origins. | |||
English | ignore | ||
The word 'ignore' originates from the Latin word 'ignorare', meaning 'not to know' or 'to be unaware'. | |||
French | ignorer | ||
In French, the word "ignorer" can also mean "to be unaware of" or "to not know something". | |||
Frisian | negearje | ||
Negearje in Frisian, meaning 'to ignore', derives from the Old Frisian word near 'near', and the suffix -je 'to do', suggesting 'to do close to', perhaps implying 'to pay little attention to'. | |||
Galician | ignorar | ||
In Galician, the verb "ignorar" can also mean to "avoid", "neglect", or "to disdain." | |||
German | ignorieren | ||
The word "ignorieren" in German is derived from the Latin word "ignorare," meaning "not to know" or "to be unaware of." | |||
Icelandic | hunsa | ||
The word "hunsa" in Icelandic can also mean "to insult" or "to humiliate". | |||
Irish | neamhaird a dhéanamh | ||
Italian | ignorare | ||
"Ignorare" in Italian can also mean "not to know" or "to be unaware of something". | |||
Luxembourgish | ignoréieren | ||
The verb "ignoréieren" in Luxembourgish is derived from the French word "ignorer", which means "to be unaware of" or "to disregard". | |||
Maltese | tinjora | ||
"Tinjora" is the Maltese word for "ignore", which is derived from the Italian "ignorare" or the Arabic "tanjara". | |||
Norwegian | overse | ||
The word "overse" in Norwegian can also mean "to not notice" or "to overlook". | |||
Portuguese (Portugal, Brazil) | ignorar | ||
In Portuguese, "ignorar" can also mean "to be unaware of" or "to not know about". | |||
Scots Gaelic | leig seachad | ||
In Scots Gaelic, the word "leig seachad" can also mean "let go" or "leave alone". | |||
Spanish | ignorar | ||
The word "ignorar" originates from the Latin word "ignorare" which means "to be unaware"} | |||
Swedish | strunta i | ||
The Swedish word 'strunta i' originated from the German phrase 'sich einen Strunt draus machen', meaning 'to make a fuss about something'. | |||
Welsh | anwybyddu | ||
The word "anwybyddu" has the same root as the word for "dear" "anwyl" and literally means "to make not dear" or "to make unimportant". |
Belarusian | ігнараваць | ||
In Belarusian, "ігнараваць" (ignore) comes from the Latin "ignorare" (not to know) and also means "to neglect." | |||
Bosnian | zanemariti | ||
The word 'zanemariti' is derived from the Turkish words 'zane' which means 'forget' or 'neglect' and 'marit' which means 'wife', suggesting a historical connotation of spousal neglect in the origin of its meaning. | |||
Bulgarian | игнорирайте | ||
The word "игнорирайте" comes from the Latin word "ignorari", which means "not to know." | |||
Czech | ignorovat | ||
The word "ignorovat" comes from the Latin verb "ignorare" which means "to not know or be unaware of". | |||
Estonian | ignoreeri | ||
The word "ignoreeri" is derived from the French word "ignorer", which means "to not know" or "to be unaware of." | |||
Finnish | jättää huomiotta | ||
The verb "jättää huomiotta" in Finnish literally means "to leave without notice". | |||
Hungarian | figyelmen kívül hagyni | ||
The word "figyelmen kívül hagyni" is literally translated as "to leave out of attention". | |||
Latvian | ignorēt | ||
In Latvian, "ignorēt" comes from the French word "ignorer," meaning "to be unaware of". | |||
Lithuanian | ignoruoti | ||
The word "ignoruoti" comes from Latin "ignorare", meaning "not to know" or "to be unaware of". | |||
Macedonian | игнорирај | ||
The word "игнорирај" is derived from the Latin word "ignorari", which means "not to know". | |||
Polish | ignorować | ||
Ignorować can also mean neglect or oversight in Polish. | |||
Romanian | ignora | ||
Ignora also means "to neglect, disregard, or overlook" in Romanian. | |||
Russian | игнорировать | ||
The word "игнорировать" comes from the Latin word "ignorar", meaning "to be unaware of" or "to not know". | |||
Serbian | игнорисати | ||
The Serbian word "игнорисати" derives from the Latin word "ignorare", meaning "not to know", and has the same basic meaning in English. | |||
Slovak | ignorovať | ||
In Slovak, "ignorovať" comes from the Latin "ignorare," meaning "to not know," and is thus related to words like "ignorance" and "ignorant." | |||
Slovenian | prezreti | ||
The word "prezreti" comes from the Proto-Slavic word "*prezьrěti", which also means "to despise" or "to disdain". | |||
Ukrainian | ігнорувати | ||
The Ukrainian word “ігнорувати” derives from the Latin ignorare meaning “to not know”. |
Bengali | উপেক্ষা | ||
The word 'উপেক্ষা' originates from the Sanskrit word 'उपेक्षा', which means disregard, neglect, or contempt. | |||
Gujarati | અવગણો | ||
"અવગણો" can also be used to refer to the process of removing excess water or salt from soil. | |||
Hindi | नज़रअंदाज़ करना | ||
The word "नज़रअंदाज़ करना" comes from the Persian words "nazar" (look) and "andaz" (manner), meaning "to not look in someone's direction". | |||
Kannada | ನಿರ್ಲಕ್ಷಿಸಿ | ||
The word "ನಿರ್ಲಕ್ಷಿಸಿ" in Kannada ultimately derives from Sanskrit through Prakrit, where it meant "disregard, slight, contempt, scorn". | |||
Malayalam | അവഗണിക്കുക | ||
Marathi | दुर्लक्ष करा | ||
The word "दुर्लक्ष करा" can also mean to neglect or disregard something. | |||
Nepali | बेवास्ता गर्नुहोस् | ||
The Nepali verb बेवास्ता गर्नुहोस् primarily means "to ignore" but can also mean "to despise" or "to disregard" in certain contexts. | |||
Punjabi | ਨਜ਼ਰਅੰਦਾਜ਼ | ||
Sinhala (Sinhalese) | නොසලකා හරිනවා | ||
Tamil | புறக்கணிக்கவும் | ||
Telugu | పట్టించుకోకుండా | ||
Also used as an adverb meaning "without care or concern" or "regardless of". | |||
Urdu | نظر انداز کریں | ||
The Urdu word 'nazar andaaz karein' also means 'to overlook' or 'to disregard'. |
Chinese (Simplified) | 忽视 | ||
"忽视" 在中文裡原意為「忽視」和「忽略」,引申為「輕視」或「不重視」的意思。 | |||
Chinese (Traditional) | 忽視 | ||
忽視源自《論語》,意為暫時忽略或不考慮某事,另有一層意思是輕視或不重視。 | |||
Japanese | 無視する | ||
"無視する" can also mean to "neglect" or "disregard". | |||
Korean | 무시하다 | ||
"무시하다" originates from the Chinese word "無視", which means "not to see". | |||
Mongolian | үл тоомсорлох | ||
The word "үл тоомсорлох" is derived from the Mongolian words "үл" (not) and "тоомсох" (to consider), and it can also mean "to neglect" or "to disregard." | |||
Myanmar (Burmese) | လျစ်လျူရှု | ||
Indonesian | mengabaikan | ||
The Indonesian word "mengabaikan" has additional meanings such as "to disregard" and "to neglect". | |||
Javanese | nglirwakake | ||
The word "nglirwakake" is derived from the word "lir" which means "like" and "wak"" which means "not". Combining "lir" and "wak" would mean "not like" or "ignore" | |||
Khmer | មិនអើពើ | ||
"មិនអើពើ" can also mean "to pretend not to see or know" or "to refuse to listen" | |||
Lao | ບໍ່ສົນໃຈ | ||
Malay | abai | ||
"Abai" is derived from the Hindustani (Urdu/Hindi) word "abhaig" (careless, negligent). | |||
Thai | เพิกเฉย | ||
The word "เพิกเฉย" (ignore) in Thai comes from the Pali word "upekkha" meaning "equanimity" or "indifference". | |||
Vietnamese | làm lơ | ||
"Làm lơ" also means to pretend not to see or know something | |||
Filipino (Tagalog) | huwag pansinin | ||
Azerbaijani | laqeyd et | ||
The word "laqeyd et" in Azerbaijani is also used to describe a state of apathy or indifference. | |||
Kazakh | елемеу | ||
The word "елемеу" can also mean "to neglect" or "to disregard" | |||
Kyrgyz | көрмөксөн | ||
The Kyrgyz word "көрмөксөн" can also mean "to overlook" or "to neglect". | |||
Tajik | нодида гирифтан | ||
The word "нодида гирифтан" is also used to mean "to pretend not to see or notice something" | |||
Turkmen | üns berme | ||
Uzbek | e'tiborsiz qoldiring | ||
E'tiborsiz qoldiring (ignore) is ultimately derived from the Arabic word for 'attention' ('etibor') or 'ignorance' ('jahil'). | |||
Uyghur | سەل قاراڭ | ||
Hawaiian | nānā ʻole | ||
The word 'nānā ʻole' can also mean 'to be blind' or 'to be deaf', as it literally translates to 'having no eyes' or 'having no ears'. | |||
Maori | whakahawea | ||
The Maori word 'whakahawea' also means 'dismiss' or 'disregard', suggesting a broader sense of disregard than just 'ignoring'. | |||
Samoan | le amanaʻia | ||
The phrase "le amanaʻia" literally means "being put to the side" in Samoan. | |||
Tagalog (Filipino) | huwag pansinin | ||
Aymara | jaytanukuña | ||
Guarani | ñembotavy | ||
Esperanto | ignori | ||
The Esperanto word "ignori" can also mean "be unaware of", "overlook", or "neglect" | |||
Latin | ignore | ||
Etymology: Latin ignotus ("unknown"); alternate meaning: to be unaware of. |
Greek | αγνοώ | ||
In Ancient Greek "αγνοώ" meant "not to know" - hence its modern meaning of being unaware or ignoring. | |||
Hmong | kav liam | ||
"Kav liam" can also be used to mean "cover" or "hide" in Hmong. | |||
Kurdish | berçavnegirtin | ||
The Kurdish word "berçavnegirtin" literally translates to "to turn one's face." | |||
Turkish | göz ardı etmek | ||
Göz ardı etmek, originally meant 'to leave something to the eye' | |||
Xhosa | ungayihoyi | ||
The Xhosa word "ungayihoyi" can also mean "to act as if something does not exist" or "to disregard completely"} | |||
Yiddish | איגנאָרירן | ||
The word "איגנאָרירן" (ignore) in Yiddish derives from the Latin word "ignorare" (to not know). | |||
Zulu | unganaki | ||
"Unga naki" has the extended meaning of ignoring or avoiding something unpleasant to the eyes or the mind. | |||
Assamese | অগ্ৰাহ্য কৰা | ||
Aymara | jaytanukuña | ||
Bhojpuri | देखि के अनदेखा कयिल | ||
Dhivehi | އަޅާނުލުން | ||
Dogri | नजरअंदाज करना | ||
Filipino (Tagalog) | huwag pansinin | ||
Guarani | ñembotavy | ||
Ilocano | baybay-an | ||
Krio | nɔ put atɛnshɔn pan | ||
Kurdish (Sorani) | پشتگوێخستن | ||
Maithili | नजरअंदाज | ||
Meiteilon (Manipuri) | ꯈꯪꯖꯤꯟꯅꯗꯕ | ||
Mizo | haider | ||
Oromo | simachuu diduu | ||
Odia (Oriya) | ଅବଜ୍ ignore ା କର | | ||
Quechua | wischupay | ||
Sanskrit | उपेक्षा | ||
Tatar | игътибар итмә | ||
Tigrinya | ምዕፃው | ||
Tsonga | honisa | ||