ignore, nelect, disregard and overlook - ignore - consider something as unimportant and not pay attention. "ignore" is a common word.. - disregard - ignore intentionally. It is used in more formal contexts. - neglect - fail to pay attention or take care adequately (usually in some duty). May be intentional or accidental. - overlook - fail to notice or catch something by mistake. If you know but do not acknowledge or respond to someone else's feelings, you are "ignoring" them. Examples: - He ignored me when I said "hi" today. (He intentionally acted like he didn't see me) - We will sound the alarm for test. Please disregard/ignore it. (a formal announcement) - When he was small, his parents neglected him [neglected to look after him]. (Didn't do what they should have done) - The accountant overlooked an important item on the list". (Missed what he should have processed).

This is just the way I would explain the difference, but I am no dictionary so here we go: Ignore is an active choice, if somebody is doing something and you do not want to acknowledge it you would ignore them. Neglect is when you have some kind of responsibility and you choose not to do it, we talk about people neglecting children if they don't feed them, or bathe them or stuff along those lines. Disregard is to basically choose to not let something bother you, synonym would be to not pay attention to something. Overlook is when you see something that is wrong and you choose to not correct it, like a corrupt police officer may overlook some crime in exchange for money.