# ingenuous

Pronunciation: say "in-JEN-yoo-uhs" /ɪnˈd͡ʒɛn.ju.əs/

## Adjective

1. Naive and trusting, inclined to believe what other people say.
   - Simple: Believing and trusting people easily, without thinking they might lie.
   - _The ingenuous newcomer handed his savings to the first broker who promised to double them._
   - _She was ingenuous enough to believe the landlord would fix the heating by Friday._
2. Speaking or acting openly and frankly, with nothing held back.
   - Simple: Open and honest when you speak, not hiding anything.
   - _He gave an ingenuous account of his mistakes, leaving nothing out._
   - _Her ingenuous answers won over a committee tired of polished evasions._
3. Showing the simplicity of a child in what one does or says.
   - Simple: Acting in a simple way, like a young child.
   - _It was ingenuous of me to ask the magician whether his rabbit was real._
   - _The drawings had an ingenuous charm that no trained artist could copy._
4. Unable to hide one's feelings, so that they show plainly.
   - Simple: Not able to hide how you feel, so others can see it.
   - _Too ingenuous to play poker, he grinned every time he drew a good card._
   - _Her ingenuous face showed her disappointment before she could say a word._
5. Lacking sophistication; clumsy or obvious, especially of an attempt or effort.
   - Simple: Simple and clumsy, so that others can easily see what you are trying to do.
   - _His ingenuous attempt to change the subject fooled no one at the table._
   - _The campaign's ingenuous efforts to look youthful only made the senator seem older._

## Origin

A learned borrowing from Latin ingenuus ("of noble character, frank"); a doublet of ingenu.

Source: DictionaryAI, https://dictionaryai.com/define/ingenuous (written from Wiktionary data, CC BY-SA 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/).