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Glite Dictionary
ingenuous

ingenuous

3 7.9
Open and honest, without hiding what they feel or want
  • adjective
  • /ɪnˈdʒɛnjʊəs/
translation icon : ingenuo
  • Our rough-hewn Henry's ingenuous courtship of Princess Katherine of France, in Act 5, Scene 2, is, in a word, charming.

And, and that, that would, that concerns me a little bit because it's like, that seems a little bit, it's ingenuous to me.

Examples

  • "Are you going somewhere?" Jazz asked in a little, larky voice of exemplary virtue and ingenuous wonder.

    Fiction book (1990)

  • " Rose is more ingenuous than she lets on.

    Fiction book (1990)

  • Nick was looking at her, too, with his ingenuous eyes wide open.

    Fiction book (1991)

  • I find him rather ingenuous and charming.

    Hidalgo (2004)

  • "Well, now," she said, assessing Susannah with a smile of ingenuous welcome.

    Fiction book (2001)

  • The fifth was a French woman whose ingenuous English conveyed sincerity.

    Fiction book (1993)

  • Still, he found something ingenuous about the portly, balding stranger beside him.

    Fiction book (1999)

  • "Oh, boy, I'm the one who's pleased to meet you," Tim Moriarty said with a wide and ingenuous smile.

    Fiction book (2002)

  • "Nicholas?" said Janet, her eyes on Nick's blunt face and those ingenuous blue eyes, which were looking at Christina and not at her.

    Fiction book (1991)

  • Her ingenuous smile made everyone feel comfortable and welcome.

Synonyms

innocent
vsingenuous
225 2.9

Not experienced and unaware of how things work

is honest and open but not only inexperienced or naive
guileless
vsingenuous
4 7.8

Being honest and not trying to trick anyone

is open and unable to hide feelings rather than only lacking deceit
artless
vsingenuous
3 6.0

Simple and honest in a natural way, not pretending

is open and shows feelings rather than merely lacking trickery
openhearted
vsingenuous
1 4.1

Shows kindness and honesty, sharing feelings with others

is open and honest but not focused on warm generosity

Antonyms

sophisticated
86 6.7

A person who has wide experience of the world and good social manners

disingenuous
66 7.8

Pretending to be honest by hiding what you know

cunning
43 5.1

Clever at getting things by tricking people

How Open

guileless
4 7.8
ingenuous
3 7.9
open
702 1.0
candid
83 4.6
frank
104 3.4

Surface Forms

ingenuous positive

Etymology

Ingenuous comes from the Latin word ingenuus, which meant 'honest' or 'freeborn', so it was used for someone open and natural. A helpful way to remember it is not to mix it up with ingenious ('clever'), because ingenuous means 'open and innocent'.