naive

or na·ïve

[ nah-eev ]

adjective

1. having or showing a lack of experience, judgment, or information; credulous:

   She's so naive she believes everything she reads.

   He has a very naive attitude toward politics.

2. having or showing unaffected simplicity of nature or absence of artificiality; unsophisticated; ingenuous.

   Synonyms: plain, open, candid, guileless, artless, unaffected, simple

   Antonyms: artful, sophisticated

3. having or marked by a simple, unaffectedly direct style reflecting little or no formal training or technique:

   valuable naive 19th-century American portrait paintings.

4. not having previously been the subject of a scientific experiment, as an animal.

naive

/ naɪˈiːv /

adjective

1. 1. having or expressing innocence and credulity; ingenuous
   2. ( as collective noun; preceded by the )

      only the naive believed him

2. artless or unsophisticated
3. lacking developed powers of analysis, reasoning, or criticism

   a naive argument

4. another word for primitive

noun

1. rare.
   a person who is naive, esp in artistic style See primitive

Usage Note

This word is spelled with a dieresis over the i (ï) in French, indicating that it is a separate vowel sound. Many people retain this spelling when writing in English.

Derived Forms

• naˈiveness, noun
• naˈively, adverb

Other Words From

• na·ive·ly adverb
• na·ive·ness noun
• un·na·ive adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of naive¹

First recorded in 1645–55; from French, feminine of naïf, Old French naif “natural, instinctive,” from Latin nātīvus native

Word History and Origins

Origin of naive¹

C17: from French, feminine of naïf, from Old French naif native, spontaneous, from Latin nātīvus native , from nasci to be born

Example Sentences

“I know it sounds so simple and naive, but I don’t understand how the bad guy keeps winning,” she says, choking up, her soft voice tinged with disbelief.

From Los Angeles Times

“I think this will reveal itself, and I think we have a responsibility to interrogate ourselves. I’m not naive about that, and that includes all of us, individually,” Newsom said in a video address.

From Los Angeles Times

Yet it was a tricky line to walk, and, in hindsight, perhaps even naive to believe the attraction could stand apart from a film that has long been out of circulation.

From Los Angeles Times

In her final days at Harrods, Helen remembers a new girl starting who seemed "so young and naive", like she once had been.

From BBC

“Maybe this was naive of us, or naive of me, but I never thought that the city and the mayor would chose somebody like McDonnell to be chief.”

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• ignorant
• innocent
• simple
• sincere
• unsophisticated
• wide-eyed