as in naive
too willing to believe things without substantial proof
Few people are credulous enough to believe such nonsense. a credulous audience
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Recent Examples of credulous
The dissenting conservatives—Justices Brett Kavanaugh, Clarence Thomas, and Samuel Alito—who were sympathetic to major questions in its prior applications are more credulous this time.
—
Idrees Kahloon, The Atlantic, 20 Feb. 2026
But no one outside of the most credulous corners of the media are buying it.
—James Folta, Literary Hub, 29 Jan. 2026
The government’s offers of dialogue with the protesters ring hollow as it is meant as a pressure valve internationally—for credulous Westerners who believe Iran’s political system is capable of reform—and domestically.
—Washington Post, 5 Jan. 2026
On Ukraine, the new strategy does little more than make assertions, many of them too sanguine about what the country needs to survive and too credulous about Russia’s potential to serve as a constructive regional actor.
—Michael Kimmage, Foreign Affairs, 8 Dec. 2025
See All Example Sentences for credulous
Idrees Kahloon, The Atlantic, 20 Feb. 2026
But no one outside of the most credulous corners of the media are buying it.
—James Folta, Literary Hub, 29 Jan. 2026
The government’s offers of dialogue with the protesters ring hollow as it is meant as a pressure valve internationally—for credulous Westerners who believe Iran’s political system is capable of reform—and domestically.
—Washington Post, 5 Jan. 2026
On Ukraine, the new strategy does little more than make assertions, many of them too sanguine about what the country needs to survive and too credulous about Russia’s potential to serve as a constructive regional actor.
—Michael Kimmage, Foreign Affairs, 8 Dec. 2025
See All Example Sentences for credulous
Recent Examples of Synonyms for credulous
Adjective
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Southgate’s confident assertion that the tide of history was turning against bigotry now looks utopian, or even naïve.—
Jon Allsop,
New Yorker,
18 June 2026
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Season 2 follows two couples on a path of mutual destruction, one older and jaded and one young and naive.—
Kelly Lawler,
USA Today,
17 June 2026
Adjective
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The few adult characters in the film are gullible or bumbling.—
Linnea Wicklund,
Chicago Tribune,
19 June 2026
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The tactic saved the banking industry, but the great railway boom was over, and there was no reprieve for the gullible souls who had been drawn into it.—
John Cassidy,
New Yorker,
15 June 2026
Adjective
-
Authorities say a suspect who was eight months pregnant crashed her car into a Sturbridge, Massachusetts hotel early Thursday morning and then started shooting, critically injuring an innocent bystander at the hotel before turning the gun on herself.—
Aaron Parseghian,
CBS News,
18 June 2026
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The deaths of innocent Americans, and misleading the public on the rationale for their deaths, played a role in her departure.—
Gary Franks,
Hartford Courant,
17 June 2026
Adjective
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The first thing a stressed cucumber plant will do is drop blossoms and immature fruit, says Gorlin-Crenshaw.—
SJ McShane,
Martha Stewart,
18 June 2026
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The repetition accounts for immature pollen grains and mediates weather challenges by offering multiple opportunities for the pollen to transfer to the stigma.—
Megan Hughes,
Better Homes & Gardens,
18 June 2026
Cite this Entry
“Credulous.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/credulous. Accessed 20 Jun. 2026.
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