Ignorance, n.
Etymology: [F., fr. L. ignorantia.]
1. The condition of being ignorant; the want of knowledge in general, or in relation to a particular subject; the state of being uneducated or uninformed. Ignorance is the curse of God, Knowledge the wing wherewith we fly to heaven. Shak.
2. (Theol.)
A willful neglect or refusal to acquire knowledge which one may acquire and it is his duty to have. Book of Common Prayer. Invincible ignorance (Theol.), ignorance beyond the individual's control and for which, therefore, he is not responsible before God.
Shades of meaning
Fernald lists ignorance only as an antonym, under acquaintance, education, knowledge.
Where he writes about it:
Ignorance is relative; illiteracy is absolute; we have statistics of illiteracy; no statistics of ignorance are possible. — from ignorant
Synonyms
none given