benighted

(verb) overtake with darkness or night. Synonyms: benight.

(verb) envelop with social, intellectual, or moral darkness. Synonyms: benight. Example: "The benighted peoples of this area."

(verb) make darker and difficult to perceive by sight. Synonyms: benight, bedim.

(adj) overtaken by night or darkness. Synonyms: nighted. Example: "Benighted (or nighted) travelers hurrying toward home."

(adj) lacking enlightenment or knowledge or culture. Synonyms: dark. Examples: "This benighted country." "Benighted ages of barbarism and superstition." "The dark ages." "A dark age in the history of education."