The word 愚昧无知 is formed by combining two two-character compounds: 愚昧, meaning "foolish and ignorant", and 无知, meaning "lacking knowledge". 愚 conveys foolishness, 昧 denotes darkness or obscurity in understanding, 无 means without, and 知 means knowledge. Together, they create a reinforced meaning of profound ignorance and stupidity, with the latter part 无知 intensifying the former 愚昧.