Ignorance is not an excuse.

Meaning: You cannot justify your actions by claiming you didn't know better.

Choice of Words: The word Ignorance means a lack of knowledge or information. Excuse means a reason for doing or not doing something. When you put them together, the sentence means that a lack of knowledge is not a valid reason for doing or not doing something.

Alternative Expressions

Not knowing is not a reason for getting out of trouble.

Meaning: This means that if you do something wrong, you can't just say that you didn't know it was wrong to avoid getting in trouble. You are still responsible for your actions, even if you didn't know they were wrong.

Choice of Words: Not knowing means the same as ignorance, which means not being aware of something. Reason means a cause or explanation for something. Getting out of trouble means avoiding punishment or consequences for doing something wrong. When you put them together, "Not knowing is not a reason for getting out of trouble" means that not knowing something is not a valid excuse for avoiding punishment or consequences.

You can't use 'I didn't know' as an excuse.

Meaning: This means that if you do something wrong, you can't just say that you didn't know it was wrong. You are still responsible for your actions, even if you didn't know they were wrong.

Choice of Words: Use means to employ or apply something. 'I didn't know' is a phrase that expresses a lack of knowledge or awareness about something. Excuse is a reason or explanation for doing something that might be considered wrong or bad. When you put them together, "You can't use 'I didn't know' as an excuse" means that you cannot employ the phrase 'I didn't know' as a valid reason for doing something wrong.

Related Expressions