naively

Or na·ïve·ly

[nah-eev-lee]

adverb

1. in a way that shows a lack of experience, judgment, or information.

   I'll just stretch the contents of my talks into a book, I thought naively, but after three years of hard work I’m still far from completing a manuscript.

2. in a way that shows simplicity of character and the absence of artificiality or sophistication.

   The ancient historian Herodotus marks a transitional stage in cultural anthropology, between naively artless chronicle writing and scientific research.

3. in a way not influenced by previous participation in a scientific experiment or awareness of its real purpose.

   Participants behave naively and more naturally if they don’t know the true nature or objective of the study.

Other Word Forms

• unnaively adverb

Word History and Origins

Origin of naively¹

naive ( def. ) + -ly

Example Sentences

“Things are not as they used to be,” Charles naively says.

From Salon

Mr Allen said the "highly addictive" substance was being increasingly abused by young people, who sometimes "naively" considered it to be safer than Class A drugs.

From BBC

This makes viewers susceptible to believing it - "not all crazy conspiracy theorists who naively fall for disinformation".

From BBC

Many of us naively thought the 2008 election of the first Black president signaled a sea change in white Americans’ attitudes about race, but that was far too cheery a view.

From Los Angeles Times

In the case of the recent SpaceX case, commissioners made bone-headed political comments about Musk in rejecting the bid for more launches, naively handing him lawsuit fodder.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• foolishly www.thesaurus.com
• stupidly www.thesaurus.com