greenhorn
Americannoun
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an untrained or inexperienced person.
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a naive or gullible person; someone who is easily tricked or swindled.
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Slang. a newly arrived immigrant; newcomer.
noun
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an inexperienced person, esp one who is extremely gullible
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a newcomer or immigrant
Other Word Forms
- greenhornism noun
Etymology
Origin of greenhorn
1425–75; late Middle English; green, horn; originally applied to cattle with green (i.e., young) horns
Vocabulary lists containing greenhorn
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.
So to Ellis last August went a greenhorn trainer, Hamilton, then 28.
From Washington Post • Jun. 9, 2022
Wily bank robber Wesley Snipes taunts a familiar-looking rough-and-ready cop while greenhorn Ryan Phillippe delivers a TED talk on chaos theory in this listless would-be thriller.
From The Guardian • Jul. 25, 2019
But it didn't matter if you owned a green jacket or were a greenhorn journalist, Dan Jenkins had time for you.
From Golf Digest • Mar. 11, 2019
I’d recommend it for the Chabon greenhorn on up.
From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 11, 2019
Fresh arrivals to the Valentine farm made it so Cora was no longer the greenhorn, bumbling about.
From "The Underground Railroad: A Novel" by Colson Whitehead
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.
