unworldly

/' n'w :ldli/

Thân thiện

She had an unworldly innocence about her.

Definition

1. Adjective:
   • Lacking sophistication or experience in practical matters; naive or innocent: Describes a person who is not knowledgeable about or concerned with the ordinary, practical, or material aspects of life, often seeming innocent or idealistic.
   • Not concerned with material or worldly affairs; spiritual or idealistic: Describes a person, attitude, or perspective that is focused on spiritual, intellectual, or non-material values rather than on earthly or temporal concerns.

Examples of Usage

• Adjective:
  • She was an unworldly young scholar, more interested in ancient manuscripts than in current events.
  • His unworldly attitude made him seem out of place in the competitive business environment.
  • The monk led a simple, unworldly life devoted to prayer and meditation.

Advanced Usage

• "helplessly unworldly": Emphasizes a complete and almost vulnerable lack of worldly knowledge or guile.

  • The character was portrayed as a helplessly unworldly innocent who was easily deceived.

• "blissfully unworldly": Suggests a happy or contented state of being detached from worldly concerns.

  • In her remote cottage, she lived a blissfully unworldly existence.

Variants and Related Words

• Unworldliness (noun): The quality or state of being unworldly.

  • Her unworldliness was both charming and a source of worry for her family.

• Worldly (adjective): The direct antonym, meaning experienced in and concerned with material or practical affairs.

Synonyms

• Naive: Showing a lack of experience, wisdom, or judgment.
• Innocent: Free from moral wrong; not corrupted. In this context, it implies simplicity.
• Idealistic: Characterized by idealism; unrealistically aiming for perfection.
• Spiritual: Relating to or affecting the human spirit or soul as opposed to material or physical things.

Antonyms

• Worldly: Experienced and concerned with practical, material, or temporal affairs.
• Sophisticated: Having, revealing, or proceeding from a great deal of worldly experience and knowledge of fashion and culture.
• Cynical: Believing that people are motivated purely by self-interest; distrustful of human sincerity or integrity.

Related Idioms and Phrases

• To have one's head in the clouds: To be out of touch with everyday realities and practical matters; this idiom is conceptually similar to being unworldly.
  • He's a brilliant theorist, but he often has his head in the clouds about practical applications.

Học thuật

Adjective

1. not wise in the ways of the world
   • either too unsophisticated or too honest to promise more than he could deliver
   • this helplessly unworldly woman- Kate O'Brien
2. not concerned with the temporal world or swayed by mundane considerations
   • was unworldly and did not greatly miss worldly rewards- Sheldon Cheney

Từ đồng nghĩa

• unsophisticated