NAIVE Synonyms: 173 Similar and Opposite Words

Q: How is the word 'naive' different from other adjectives like it?

Some common synonyms of naive are artless , ingenuous , natural , and unsophisticated . While all these words mean "free from pretension or calculation," naive suggests lack of worldly wisdom often connoting credulousness and unchecked innocence. // politically naive

Q: When can 'artless' be used instead of 'naive'?

The meanings of artless and naive largely overlap; however, artless suggests a naturalness resulting from unawareness of the effect one is producing on others. // artless charm

Q: When is it sensible to use 'ingenuous' instead of 'naive'?

Although the words ingenuous and naive have much in common, ingenuous implies inability to disguise or conceal one's feelings or intentions. // the ingenuous enthusiasm of children

Q: When would 'natural' be a good substitute for 'naive'?

The synonyms natural and naive are sometimes interchangeable, but natural implies lacking artificiality and self-consciousness and having a spontaneousness suggesting the natural rather than the man-made world. // her unaffected, natural manner

Q: In what contexts can 'unsophisticated' take the place of 'naive'?

While in some cases nearly identical to naive , unsophisticated implies a lack of experience and training necessary for social ease and adroitness. // unsophisticated adolescents

naive

adjective

nä-ˈēv

variants or naïve

Definition of naive next

as in innocent

lacking in worldly wisdom or informed judgment a first-time buyer who was so naive that he believed the salesman's spiel and paid good money for the rusty and broken-down car

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in genuine

free from any intent to deceive or impress others the young girl gave honest and naive answers to the social worker's probing questions

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as in easy

readily taken advantage of we get piles of junk mail because you are naive enough to keep entering these dumb contests

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Synonym Chooser

How is the word naive different from other adjectives like it?

Some common synonyms of naive are artless, ingenuous, natural, and unsophisticated. While all these words mean "free from pretension or calculation," naive suggests lack of worldly wisdom often connoting credulousness and unchecked innocence.

politically naive

When can artless be used instead of naive?

The meanings of artless and naive largely overlap; however, artless suggests a naturalness resulting from unawareness of the effect one is producing on others.

artless charm

When is it sensible to use ingenuous instead of naive?

Although the words ingenuous and naive have much in common, ingenuous implies inability to disguise or conceal one's feelings or intentions.

the ingenuous enthusiasm of children

When would natural be a good substitute for naive?

The synonyms natural and naive are sometimes interchangeable, but natural implies lacking artificiality and self-consciousness and having a spontaneousness suggesting the natural rather than the man-made world.

her unaffected, natural manner

In what contexts can unsophisticated take the place of naive?

While in some cases nearly identical to naive, unsophisticated implies a lack of experience and training necessary for social ease and adroitness.

unsophisticated adolescents

Examples of naive in a Sentence

These examples are automatically compiled from online sources to illustrate current usage. Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Recent Examples on the Web Cru, the hero, is naive and earnest, learning about his place in the world with the help of POP, the AI operating system guiding him on his mission. —

Charlie Fink, Forbes, 17 Oct. 2024 The Apprentice suggests that Cohn hastened whatever rot was already present in his protégé, but its early scenes portray the opposite—that Trump, at his core, was simply naive. —

Shirley Li, The Atlantic, 11 Oct. 2024 But crashing Kelly-Anne’s scene is the more naive parasocial parasite, Clémentine (Laurie Babin), who’s in love with the killer from afar, like those women who marry murderers in prison. —

Ryan Lattanzio, IndieWire, 4 Oct. 2024 Your character seems much more naive and impressionable this season. —

Carly Thomas, The Hollywood Reporter, 2 Oct. 2024 See all Example Sentences for naive

Recent Examples of Synonyms for naive

Adjective

The post itself is innocent enough, and features The Breakfast Club co-host FaceTiming with the Brooklyn icon herself, who gave full approval of the youngster rocking her signature colorful looks from the 1997 video, which featured appearances from Uncle Luke, Aaliyah, Sheek Louch and others.

Jessica Bennett, VIBE.com, 1 Nov. 2024
Yu Bai and Louise Wong are among the heroes in helmets putting their lives on the line for the sake of seven million innocent souls, but the city’s ordinary civilian population is almost entirely absent from the unfolding drama.

James Marsh, Deadline, 1 Nov. 2024