innocent

[ in-uh-suhnt ]

adjective

1. free from moral wrong; without sin; pure:

   innocent children.

   Synonyms: immaculate, spotless, impeccable, faultless, virtuous, sinless

   Antonyms: guilty

2. free from legal or specific wrong; guiltless:

   innocent of the crime.

   Antonyms: guilty

3. not involving evil intent or motive:

   an innocent misrepresentation.

4. not causing physical or moral injury; harmless:

   innocent fun.

5. devoid (usually followed by of ):

   a law innocent of merit.

6. having or showing the simplicity or naiveté of an unworldly person; guileless; ingenuous.

   Synonyms: artless, unsophisticated, naive, simple

7. uninformed or unaware; ignorant.

noun

1. an innocent person.
2. a young child.
3. a guileless person.
4. a simpleton or idiot.
5. Usually innocents. (used with a singular verb) bluet ( def 1 ).

innocent

/ ˈɪnəsənt /

adjective

1. not corrupted or tainted with evil or unpleasant emotion; sinless; pure
2. not guilty of a particular crime; blameless
3. postpositivefoll byof free (of); lacking

   innocent of all knowledge of history

4. 1. harmless or innocuous

      an innocent game

   2. not cancerous

      an innocent tumour

5. credulous, naive, or artless
6. simple-minded; slow-witted

noun

1. an innocent person, esp a young child or an ingenuous adult
2. a simple-minded person; simpleton

Derived Forms

• ˈinnocently, adverb

Other Word Forms

• inno·cent·ly adverb
• quasi-inno·cent adjective
• quasi-inno·cent·ly adverb
• super·inno·cent adjective
• super·inno·cent·ly adverb
• un·inno·cent adjective
• un·inno·cent·ly adverb

Word History and Origins

Origin of innocent¹

First recorded in 1150–1200; Middle English, from Latin innocent- (stem of innocēns ) “harmless,” equivalent to in- in- ³ + nocēns present participle of nocēre “to harm”; -ent; noxious

Synonym Study

Innocent, blameless, guiltless imply freedom from the responsibility of having done wrong. Innocent may imply having done no wrong at any time, and having not even a knowledge of evil: an innocent victim. Blameless denotes freedom from blame, especially moral blame: a blameless life. Guiltless denotes freedom from guilt or responsibility for wrongdoing, usually in a particular instance: guiltless of a crime.

Example Sentences

Each member of this innocent family has had their lives forever changed in a flash.

From Salon

That process isn’t perfect, and actually existing criminal justice systems tend to fall short of the ideal: sometimes the guilty get off, and sometimes the innocent are condemned.

From Salon

On Monday, Trump and his staff made it abundantly clear that they intend to reject the Supreme Court's ruling that they cannot illegally imprison innocent people in a concentration camp in El Salvador.

From Salon

In a matter of days, Justice Department lawyers and administration officials have burned through basic legal duties in defense of a hideously unlawful scheme that seeks to permanently render innocent people to a black site.

From Salon

Then, less than two months into her stay, “some men made a lot of bad choices and hurt innocent people,” she said.

From Salon

Related Words

• childlike
• gullible
• ignorant
• innocuous
• wide-eyed