disingenuous
Americanadjective
adjective
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of disingenuous
Explanation
Use the adjective disingenuous to describe behavior that's not totally honest or sincere. It's disingenuous when people pretend to know less about something than they really do. Disingenuous combines dis-, meaning "not," with ingenuous (from the Latin gen-, meaning "born") which was originally used to distinguish free-born Romans from slaves, and later came to mean "honest" or "straightforward." So disingenuous means "dishonest." Ingenuous is less common now than disingenuous, but we still use it for someone who is sincere to the point of naiveté. A good synonym is insincere.
Vocabulary lists containing disingenuous
100 SAT Words Beginning with "D"
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Grade 12, List 4
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This Week in Words: March 30–April 5, 2019
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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.
Disingenuous defenses have been a staple of Goodell’s handling of Snyder since July 2020, when The Washington Post wrote its story on the franchise’s history of sexual harassment and misconduct during the owner’s tenure.
From Washington Post • Dec. 9, 2022
Disingenuous, hyperbolic rhetoric is Pyle’s specialty, as he’s proven again and again.
From Washington Times • Jun. 20, 2017
Most Disingenuous Comment: Sean and Desiree retire to Sean’s apartment for a romantic dinner of steak and frozen corn and an after-dinner swim.
From Time • Jan. 15, 2013
Disingenuous, yes, but effective in further fueling Brown's manufactured controversy and adding a little media buzz to Newsweek.
From Slate • Aug. 9, 2011
Disingenuous, dis-in-jen′ū-us, adj. not ingenuous: not frank or open: crafty.—adv.
From Chambers's Twentieth Century Dictionary (part 1 of 4: A-D) by Various
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.
