ingénue
Americannoun
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an artless, innocent, unworldly girl or young woman.
Navy and cocoa browns are good neutrals for the ingénue, and the right creamy beige or pearl gray are good choices for her more classic outfits.
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the role of a young, innocent, and appealing character in a play, movie, TV show, etc., typically a female role.
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an actress or actor who plays such a role or specializes in playing such roles.
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a young actress or actor.
At the awards event, natural diamonds were the gemstone of choice for both Hollywood ingenues and veterans alike.
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a young, inexperienced person.
The ailing leader Kim Jong Il sought to transfer power to his youngest son, a political ingenue in his 20s.
noun
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of ingénue
First recorded in 1840–50; from French, feminine of ingénu, from Latin ingenuus “native, inborn”; see origin at ingenuous; see also ingenuity ( def. )
Explanation
What do Ophelia, Snow White, and Sandy from the movie "Grease" all have in common? You could call each one an ingénue, or a young female character in literature or film who is wholesome and innocent. Ingénue comes from the French ingénu meaning "ingenuous, innocent." The term is used to describe the innocent girl stock character in film or literature. She's usually gentle, sweet, virginal, and pretty naive — which makes her susceptible to the harsh dangers of the world. Ingénue can also be used to describe an actress who specializes in playing this kind of character specifically.
Vocabulary lists containing ingenue
National Spelling Bee '14: Prelims Round 2
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And the Oscar Goes to... Award-worthy Words
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Made You Look: Synonyms for "Immature"
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
This woman should be smoking cigarettes in a Parisian cafe, not getting up to the bubbly mischief Van der Velden envisions for her ingénue.
From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 6, 2025
Pickett explains: "I wasn't really interested in her being an ingénue."
From BBC • Sep. 20, 2025
The eager cosmopolitan ingénue of the film stills is visible only in the rearview mirror.
From New York Times • Jan. 24, 2024
She’s no ingénue, but the rise of Uzo Aduba has been nothing shy of meteoric.
From Los Angeles Times • Dec. 1, 2023
The invasion of Parliament, or what almost amounted to an invasion, was an affair of far greater importance than the abduction of an ingénue.
From Garrick's Pupil by Filon, Auguston
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
