innocent

[ in-uh-suhnt ]
See synonyms for: innocentinnocentsinnocently on Thesaurus.com

adjective
  1. free from moral wrong; without sin; pure: innocent children.

  2. free from legal or specific wrong; guiltless: innocent of the crime.

  1. not involving evil intent or motive: an innocent misrepresentation.

  2. not causing physical or moral injury; harmless: innocent fun.

  3. devoid (usually followed by of): a law innocent of merit.

  4. having or showing the simplicity or naiveté of an unworldly person; guileless; ingenuous.

  5. uninformed or unaware; ignorant.

noun
  1. an innocent person.

  2. a young child.

  1. a guileless person.

  2. a simpleton or idiot.

  3. Usually innocents. (used with a singular verb) bluet (def. 1).

Origin of innocent

1
First recorded in 1150–1200; Middle English, from Latin innocent- (stem of innocēns ) “harmless,” equivalent to in- in-3 + nocēns present participle of nocēre “to harm”; see -ent; cf. noxious

synonym study For innocent

2. Innocent, blameless, guiltless imply freedom from the responsibility of having done wrong. Innocent may imply having done no wrong at any time, and having not even a knowledge of evil: an innocent victim. Blameless denotes freedom from blame, especially moral blame: a blameless life. Guiltless denotes freedom from guilt or responsibility for wrongdoing, usually in a particular instance: guiltless of a crime.

Other words for innocent

Opposites for innocent

Other words from innocent

  • in·no·cent·ly, adverb
  • qua·si-in·no·cent, adjective
  • qua·si-in·no·cent·ly, adverb
  • su·per·in·no·cent, adjective
  • su·per·in·no·cent·ly, adverb
  • un·in·no·cent, adjective
  • un·in·no·cent·ly, adverb

Words that may be confused with innocent

Words Nearby innocent

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use innocent in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for innocent

innocent

/ (ˈɪnəsənt) /


adjective
  1. not corrupted or tainted with evil or unpleasant emotion; sinless; pure

  2. not guilty of a particular crime; blameless

  1. (postpositive foll by of) free (of); lacking: innocent of all knowledge of history

    • harmless or innocuous: an innocent game

    • not cancerous: an innocent tumour

  2. credulous, naive, or artless

  3. simple-minded; slow-witted

noun
  1. an innocent person, esp a young child or an ingenuous adult

  2. a simple-minded person; simpleton

Derived forms of innocent

  • innocently, adverb

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012