--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Learning, n. The kind of ignorance…" description: "\"Learning, n. The kind of ignorance distinguishing the studious.\" — Ambrose Bierce" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d02/ambrose-bierce-140_education_learning-n-the-kind-of-ignorance-disting_2132986.jpg" --- # Learning, n. The kind of ignorance distinguishing the… ![“Learning, n. The kind of ignorance distinguishing the studious.” quote by Ambrose Bierce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d02/ambrose-bierce-140_education_learning-n-the-kind-of-ignorance-disting_2132986.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d02/ambrose-bierce-140_education_learning-n-the-kind-of-ignorance-disting_2132986.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d02/ambrose-bierce-140_education_learning-n-the-kind-of-ignorance-disting_2132986.jpg) > “Learning, n. The kind of ignorance distinguishing the studious.” [Ambrose Bierce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ambrose-bierce/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Learning is a form of ignorance that distinguishes the scholarly from the uneducated. **In simple terms:** Learning shows you don’t know everything. Key Takeaway Embrace humility in education. Themes knowledge humility education Mood wry critical Type philosophical satirical When to use this quote - academic study - self‑study - teaching - career development Key Concepts epistemology self‑awareness Questions to Reflect On - How do you balance learning and action? - When does knowledge become a barrier? A Different Perspective Overemphasis on learning can lead to paralysis by analysis. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Distinguishing Studious](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/distinguishing-studious-4405106/) [Education](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/education/) [Ignorance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ignorance/) [Ignorance Distinguishing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ignorance-distinguishing-4405105/) [Kind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/kind/) [Learning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/learning/) [Studious](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/studious/) ## Related quotes > [Knowledge is the small part of ignorance that we arrange and classify.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ambrose-bierce/knowledge-is-the-small-part-of-ignorance-that-we-arrange-and-classify/) [Ambrose Bierce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ambrose-bierce/) > [I was very studious.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-was-very-studious/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Exhausting thought, And hiving wisdom with each studious year.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lord-byron/exhausting-thought-and-hiving-wisdom-with-each-studious-year/) [Lord Byron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lord-byron/) > [After high school, I was going to move out to L.A. and try to pursue my dreams of acting. My parents said, "Thats fine.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/josie-loren/after-high-school-i-was-going-to-move-out-to-l-a-and-try-to-pursue-my/) [Josie Loren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/josie-loren/) > [He that pines with hunger, is in little care how others shall be fed. The poor man is seldom studious to make his grandson…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/he-that-pines-with-hunger-is-in-little-care-how-others-shall-be-fed/) [Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/) > [My high school, like most high schools, had a pretty rigid stratification system. Kids were clustered into groups - the studious ones, the athletes,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/parker-j-palmer/my-high-school-like-most-high-schools-had-a-pretty-rigid/) [Parker J. Palmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/parker-j-palmer/) > [I went to a very academically competitive high school. So I was always quite studious and quiet, just to keep up with the other…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-barnes/i-went-to-a-very-academically-competitive-high-school-so-i-was-always/) [Ben Barnes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-barnes/) > [Walk in this faithless grass with studious tread, Lest mice, weasels, germane beasts, too soon The tall hat and eyes, the fierce feet, for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/allen-tate/walk-in-this-faithless-grass-with-studious-tread-lest-mice-weasels/) [Allen Tate](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/allen-tate/) > [Today, luxury resides in everything that is becoming rare: communion with nature, silence, meditation, slowness rediscovered, the pleasure of living out of step with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pascal-bruckner/today-luxury-resides-in-everything-that-is-becoming-rare-communion/) [Pascal Bruckner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pascal-bruckner/) > [“The learned and the studious of thought have no monopoly of wisdom. Their violence of direction in some degree disqualifies them to think truly.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/the-learned-and-the-studious-of-thought-have-no-monopoly-of-wisdom/) [ralph waldo emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [Steinitz was a thinker worthy of a seat in the halls of a university. A player, as the world believed he was, he was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emanuel-lasker/steinitz-was-a-thinker-worthy-of-a-seat-in-the-halls-of-a-university/) [Emanuel Lasker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emanuel-lasker/) > [I was studious and bookish. Not just as a child but also as a teenager. I took myself too seriously.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicola-sturgeon/i-was-studious-and-bookish-not-just-as-a-child-but-also-as-a-teenager/) [Nicola Sturgeon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicola-sturgeon/) > [I'm quite a studious person, I think.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-higgins/i-m-quite-a-studious-person-i-think/) [Alex Higgins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alex-higgins/) > [The studious silence of the library ... Thought is the thought of thought. Tranquil brightness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-joyce/the-studious-silence-of-the-library-thought-is-the-thought-of-thought/) [James Joyce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-joyce/) > [“To be studious was to be the opposite of boring, she had believed; it was to be so interested, so madly curious, that one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/meredith-duran/to-be-studious-was-to-be-the-opposite-of-boring-she-had-believed-it/) [Meredith Duran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/meredith-duran/) ## More by Ambrose Bierce > [OBSESSED, p.p. Vexed by an evil spirit, like the Gadarene swine and other critics. Obsession was once more common than it is now. Arasthus…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ambrose-bierce/obsessed-p-p-vexed-by-an-evil-spirit-like-the-gadarene-swine-and/) [Ambrose Bierce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ambrose-bierce/) > [DECIDE, v.i. To succumb to the preponderance of one set of influences over another set.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ambrose-bierce/decide-v-i-to-succumb-to-the-preponderance-of-one-set-of-influences/) [Ambrose Bierce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ambrose-bierce/) > [IMMORAL, adj. Inexpedient. Whatever in the long run and with regard to the greater number of instances men find to be generally inexpedient comes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ambrose-bierce/immoral-adj-inexpedient-whatever-in-the-long-run-and-with-regard-to/) [Ambrose Bierce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ambrose-bierce/) > [REVIEW, v.t. To set your wisdom (holding not a doubt of it./ Although in truth there's neither bone nor skin to it)/ At work…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ambrose-bierce/review-v-t-to-set-your-wisdom-holding-not-a-doubt-of-it-although-in/) [Ambrose Bierce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ambrose-bierce/) > [CLOCK, n. A machine of great moral value to man, allaying his concern for the future by reminding him what a lot of time…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ambrose-bierce/clock-n-a-machine-of-great-moral-value-to-man-allaying-his-concern/) [Ambrose Bierce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ambrose-bierce/) > [RUBBISH, n. Worthless matter, such as the religions, philosophies, literatures, arts and sciences of the tribes infesting the regions lying due south from Boreaplas.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ambrose-bierce/rubbish-n-worthless-matter-such-as-the-religions-philosophies/) [Ambrose Bierce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ambrose-bierce/) > [There was never a genius who was not thought a fool until he disclosed himself; whereas he is a fool then only.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ambrose-bierce/there-was-never-a-genius-who-was-not-thought-a-fool-until-he/) [Ambrose Bierce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ambrose-bierce/) > [Telephone, n. An invention of the devil which abrogates some of the advantages of making a disagreeable person keep his distance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ambrose-bierce/telephone-n-an-invention-of-the-devil-which-abrogates-some-of-the/) [Ambrose Bierce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ambrose-bierce/) > [WHANGDEPOOTENAWAH, n. In the Ojibwa tongue, disaster; an unexpected affliction that strikes hard.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ambrose-bierce/whangdepootenawah-n-in-the-ojibwa-tongue-disaster-an-unexpected/) [Ambrose Bierce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ambrose-bierce/) > [Jealous, adj. Unduly concerned about the preservation of that which can be lost only if not worth keeping.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ambrose-bierce/jealous-adj-unduly-concerned-about-the-preservation-of-that-which-can/) [Ambrose Bierce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ambrose-bierce/) > [RIDICULE, n. Words designed to show that the person of whom they are uttered is devoid of the dignity of character distinguishing him who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ambrose-bierce/ridicule-n-words-designed-to-show-that-the-person-of-whom-they-are/) [Ambrose Bierce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ambrose-bierce/) > [Think twice before you speak to a friend in need](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ambrose-bierce/think-twice-before-you-speak-to-a-friend-in-need/) [Ambrose Bierce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ambrose-bierce/) > [HERMIT, n. A person whose vices and follies are not sociable.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ambrose-bierce/hermit-n-a-person-whose-vices-and-follies-are-not-sociable/) [Ambrose Bierce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ambrose-bierce/) > [TARIFF, n. A scale of taxes on imports, designed to protect the domestic producer against the greed of his consumer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ambrose-bierce/tariff-n-a-scale-of-taxes-on-imports-designed-to-protect-the-domestic/) [Ambrose Bierce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ambrose-bierce/) > [A bad marriage is like an electrical thrilling machine: it makes you dance, but you can't let go.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ambrose-bierce/a-bad-marriage-is-like-an-electrical-thrilling-machine-it-makes-you/) [Ambrose Bierce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ambrose-bierce/) [Explore all 1,157 Ambrose Bierce quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ambrose-bierce/) ## More Education quotes > [I put myself in the student's place and remember the frustrations, doubts, determination, and desires I felt when I was going through the initial…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ted-martinez/i-put-myself-in-the-student-s-place-and-remember-the-frustrations/) [Ted Martinez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ted-martinez/) > [“In school you are taught to obey and not to think straight for your own good. Otherwise the world would be full of millionaires…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mwanandeke-kindembo/in-school-you-are-taught-to-obey-and-not-to-think-straight-for-your/) [Mwanandeke Kindembo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mwanandeke-kindembo/) > [For successful education there must always be a certain freshness in the knowledge dealt with. It must be either new in itself or invested…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-north-whitehead/for-successful-education-there-must-always-be-a-certain-freshness-in/) [Alfred North Whitehead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-north-whitehead/) > [Where I grew up, learning was a collective activity. But when I got to school and tried to share learning with other students that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-giroux/where-i-grew-up-learning-was-a-collective-activity-but-when-i-got-to/) [Henry Giroux](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-giroux/) > [There's no authoritarian structure at Reed College, but the education is conservative. So what you have is a lot of students who are very…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-miller/there-s-no-authoritarian-structure-at-reed-college-but-the-education/) [Donald Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-miller/) > [“What's the best thing about being in college? Good teachers. They inspire you, they entertain you, and you end up learning a ton even…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-sparks/what-s-the-best-thing-about-being-in-college-good-teachers-they/) [Nicholas Sparks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-sparks/) > [“If one has not a head of steel it will burst; if he has not within it a brain of liquid quicksilver, he will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ioannes-amos-commenius/if-one-has-not-a-head-of-steel-it-will-burst-if-he-has-not-within-it/) [Ioannes Amos Commenius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ioannes-amos-commenius/) > [“let us not teach / what we have learned badly / and not profited by”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-d-hilda-doolittle/let-us-not-teach-what-we-have-learned-badly-and-not-profited-by/) [H.D. (Hilda Doolittle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-d-hilda-doolittle/) > [“It took me years to learn to sit at my desk for more than two minutes at a time, to put up with the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erica-jong/it-took-me-years-to-learn-to-sit-at-my-desk-for-more-than-two-minutes/) [Erica Jong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erica-jong/) > [According to Plato, we don't learn anything. Our soul has lived so many lives that we know everything. Teachers and education can only remind…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-palahniuk/according-to-plato-we-don-t-learn-anything-our-soul-has-lived-so-many/) [Chuck Palahniuk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-palahniuk/) > [“I only began to enjoy studying after I got through the educational system and became a so-called member of society. If something interested me,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-only-began-to-enjoy-studying-after-i-got-through-the-educational/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [If you had made the acquiring of ignorance the study of your life, you could not have graduated with higher honor than you could…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/if-you-had-made-the-acquiring-of-ignorance-the-study-of-your-life-you/) [Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/) > [How wonderful it would be, I thought, if only we could practice the teachings of the Buddha as he really taught them from his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dzogchen-ponlop-rinpoche/how-wonderful-it-would-be-i-thought-if-only-we-could-practice-the/) [Dzogchen Ponlop Rinpoche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dzogchen-ponlop-rinpoche/) > [English teachers tend to put more thought in the books than the author did](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/english-teachers-tend-to-put-more-thought-in-the-books-than-the/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [When will society, like a mother, take care of all her children?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/horace-mann/when-will-society-like-a-mother-take-care-of-all-her-children/) [Horace Mann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/horace-mann/) [Browse all 37,666 Education quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/education/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Learning, n. 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