Ingenuous definition

ĭn-jĕnyo͝o-əs
Demonstrating childlike simplicity.
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The definition of ingenuous is open or frank.

An example of ingenuous is a person who tells the truth.

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Lacking in cunning, guile, or worldliness; innocent or naive.

I'm not so ingenuous as to believe everything he says.

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Unable to mask one's feelings.
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Straightforward or frank; candid.
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Frank; open; candid.
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Simple; artless; naive; without guile.
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(obs.) Of noble birth or nature.
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Origin of ingenuous

  • Latin ingenuus honest, freeborn genə- in Indo-European roots

    From American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition

  • From Latin ingenuus ("of noble character, frank")

    From Wiktionary

Ingenuous Sentence Examples

  • Beside, there's no such thing as idiot-proof; idiots are far too ingenuous.

  • Cleverly segueing between stories... von Stockert's use of props and set is also ingenuous.

  • He has, indeed, a true love of England, sometimes not without a suspicion of insularity, but always fresh and ingenuous.

  • Personal statements Personal statements tend to come over as a rather ingenuous hard sell.

  • But he was the one man of ability who could hope to rule the debris of the kingdom of Jerusalem with success; he was the master of an Italian statecraft which gave him the advantage over his ingenuous rival; and Richard was finally forced to recognize him as king (April 11 9 2).

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Words near ingenuous in the Dictionary