naively

American  

[nah-eev-lee] / nɑˈiv li /

Or naïvely

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.

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Other Word Forms

• unnaively adverb

Etymology

Origin of naively

naive ( def. ) + -ly

Example Sentences

There’s an obvious objection to all this: It sounds as if we’re naively personifying a giant math problem, mistaking statistical patterns for sentience—falling for the oldest anthropomorphic error in the book.

From The Wall Street Journal

Firstly, they had, perhaps naively, imagined that the briefings would generate some news, but not wall-to-wall headline news.

From BBC

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

From Salon

He said he "maybe naively" assumed he was in the process of being treated, and there would be follow-up appointments over the course of weeks.

From BBC

He and his original team probably thought, even if naively, that they could turn things around for the better in the country.

From BBC

Related Words

• foolishly
• stupidly