oblivion

English

Etymology

From Middle English oblivion, from Anglo-Norman oblivion, from Latin oblīviō (“forgetfulness”), from oblivisci (“to forget”).

Pronunciation

• enPR: əblĭvʹēən, IPA^(key): /əˈblɪviːən/

• Audio (US)

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• Audio (UK)

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Noun

oblivion (usually uncountable, plural oblivions)

1. The state of forgetting completely, of being oblivious, unconscious, unaware, as when sleeping, drunk, or dead.

   He regularly drank himself into oblivion.

   Only the oblivion of sleep can heal the greatest traumas.

2. The state of being completely forgotten, of being reduced to a state of non-existence, extinction, or nothingness, including through war and destruction. (Figuratively) for an area like hell, a wasteland.

   Due to modern technology, many more people and much more information will not slip into oblivion, contrary to what happened throughout history until now.

   They tried to bomb them into oblivion.

   I will cast them into oblivion!

3. A form of purgatory.
4. (obsolete) Amnesty.

Synonyms

• forgetness

Related terms

• obliviate, obliviation, oblivious

Translations

state of forgetfulness or distraction

• Albanian: harresë (sq)
• Arabic: نِسْيَان (nisyān)
• Bulgarian: забраванство n (zabravanstvo)
• Catalan: oblit (ca) m
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: please add this translation if you can

• Czech: zapomnění n
• Danish: glemsel c
• Dutch: vergeetachtigheid (nl)
• Finnish: hajamielisyys (fi), unohtelu (fi)
• French: oubli (fr) m
• Galician: esquecemento (gl) m
• Georgian: გულმავიწყობა (gulmavic̣q̇oba)
• German: Vergessen (de) n
• Greek: λησμονιά (el) f (lismoniá), λήθη (el) f (líthi)

  Ancient: λήθη f (lḗthē)

• Hebrew: שִׁכְחָה (he) f (shikhkhá)
• Hungarian: feledés (hu)
• Ido: oblivieso (io)
• Italian: oblio (it) m, dimenticanza (it) f, smemorataggine f, smemoratezza f, scordamento m
• Latin: oblīviō f
• Latvian: aizmirstība f, aizmirsība f
• Macedonian: заборав m (zaborav)
• Middle English: oblivion
• Norwegian:

  Bokmål: glemsel m

  Nynorsk: gløymsle f

• Polish: nieświadomość (pl) f
• Portuguese: esquecimento (pt) m, olvido (pt), oblívio (pt)
• Russian: забытье́ (ru) n (zabytʹjé), забытьё (ru) n (zabytʹjó)
• Spanish: olvido (es) m, desmemoria (es) f
• Tachawit: itta (shy)
• Turkish: nisyan (tr), unutma (tr)
• Ukrainian: забуття n (zabuttja)
• Welsh: angof m

state of being completely forgotten

• Albanian: harresë (sq)
• Bulgarian: забвение (bg) n (zabvenie)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: please add this translation if you can

• Czech: zapomnění n
• Danish: glemsel c
• Dutch: vergetelheid (nl) f
• Finnish: unhola (fi), unohdus (fi), unho (fi)
• French: oubli (fr) m
• Galician: esquecemento (gl) m
• German: Vergessenheit (de) f
• Greek: λήθη (el) f (líthi)
• Italian: oblio (it) m, dimenticanza (it) f
• Latin: oblīviō f
• Latvian: aizmirstība f
• Macedonian: заборав m (zaborav)
• Maori: korenga
• Middle English: oblivion
• Norwegian:

  Bokmål: glemsel m

  Nynorsk: gløymsle f

• Polish: zapomnienie (pl) n, niepamięć (pl) f
• Portuguese: esquecimento (pt) m
• Russian: забве́ние (ru) n (zabvénije)
• Spanish: olvido (es) m, oscuridad (es) f
• Swedish: glömska (sv) c, förgätenhet (sv) c
• Turkish: unutulma (tr)
• Welsh: ebargofiant m, angof, ebargofiant

state of permanent unconsciousness after death

• Chinese:

  Mandarin: please add this translation if you can

• Finnish: olemattomuus (fi)
• Spanish: please add this translation if you can
• Welsh: ebargofiant

a state of nothingness

• Chinese:

  Mandarin: please add this translation if you can

• Danish: intethed
• Esperanto: abismo (eo)
• Finnish: olemattomuus (fi)
• French: néant (fr) m
• Italian: oblio (it) m
• Macedonian: ништожност f (ništožnost)
• Maori: korenga
• Spanish: nada (es) f
• Welsh: ebargofiant

figuratively: wasteland; a supernatural realm of waste, like hell

• Chinese:

  Mandarin: please add this translation if you can

• Finnish: kadotus (fi)
• French: néant (fr) m
• Spanish: please add this translation if you can

The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.

Translations to be checked

• Arabic: ^{(please verify)} نسيان (nisyaan), ^{(please verify)} سلوان (sulwaan)
• French: ^{(please verify)} oubli (fr)
• Hungarian: ^{(please verify)} feledés (hu)
• Italian: ^{(please verify)} oblio (it)
• Lithuanian: ^{(please verify)} Užmiršimas
• Serbo-Croatian: ^{(please verify)} zȁborāv (sh)/^{(please verify)} за̏бора̄в
• Spanish: ^{(please verify)} olvido (es)
• Swedish: ^{(please verify)} glömska (sv)
• Turkish: ^{(please verify)} nisyan (tr), ^{(please verify)} unutulma (tr)

See also

• obliteration

Verb

oblivion (third-person singular simple present oblivions, present participle oblivioning, simple past and past participle oblivioned)

1. (transitive) To consign to oblivion; to efface utterly.

Further reading

• “oblivion”, in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: G. & C. Merriam, 1913, →OCLC.
• “oblivion”, in The Century Dictionary […], New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911, →OCLC.
• “oblivion”, in OneLook Dictionary Search.

Middle English

Alternative forms

• oblivioun, oblyvyon, oblyvyone, oblyvyoun

Etymology

From Anglo-Norman oblivion, from Latin oblīviō.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ɔbˈliviun/, /ɔbˈliːviun/

Noun

oblivion (uncountable) (Late Middle English)

1. oblivion (state of forgetting completely)
2. oblivion (state of being forgotten)

Related terms

• oblivious

Descendants

• English: oblivion

References

• “oblī̆viǒun, n.”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007.

Old French

Etymology

Borrowed from Latin oblīviō.

Noun

oblivion oblique singular, f (oblique plural oblivions, nominative singular oblivion, nominative plural oblivions)

1. forgetfulness

Descendants

• → Middle English: oblivion, oblivioun, oblyvyon, oblyvyone, oblyvyoun
  • English: oblivion

References

• oblivion on the Anglo-Norman On-Line Hub