innocent

1 of 2

adjective

in·​no·​cent ˈi-nə-sənt 

1

a

: free from legal guilt or fault

also : lawful

a wholly innocent transaction

b

: free from guilt or sin especially through lack of knowledge of evil : blameless

an innocent child

c

: harmless in effect or intention

… searching for a hidden motive in even the most innocent conversation.

—Leonard Wibberley

also : candid

gave me an innocent gaze

2

a

: lacking or reflecting a lack of sophistication, guile, or self-consciousness : artless, ingenuous

b

: ignorant

… almost entirely innocent of Latin.

—C. L. Wrenn

also : unaware

… perfectly innocent of the confusion he had created …

—B. R. Haydon

3

: lacking or deprived of something

… her face innocent of cosmetics …

—Marcia Davenport

innocently adverb

innocent

2 of 2

noun

plural innocents

: a person who is innocent: such as

a

: a person free from sin : a young child

the biblical massacre/slaughter of the innocents

b

: a naïve, inexperienced, or unsophisticated person

a political innocent

… during a great land boom in which immense fortunes were made and innocents like himself fleeced.

—Arthur Miller

c

: a blameless person : a person who does not deserve to be harmed

The war caused the death of thousands of innocents.

Synonyms

Adjective

• impeccable
• pure
• sinless
• white

Noun

• angel
• dove
• lamb
• sheep

Examples of innocent in a Sentence

Adjective

He says that he is innocent of the crime.

She was found innocent of all charges.

A person accused of a crime is considered innocent until proven guilty.

Someone told your secret, but it wasn't me. I'm innocent.

Noun

an innocent who is often puzzled by and prey to the evils of the world

Recent Examples on the Web

Adjective

On July 8, U.S. soldiers escorting a train fired at crowds in Hammond, killing an innocent bystander. —Robert Loerzel, Chicago Tribune, 22 June 2025

Night in West Texas is a probing look at the cracks in the American justice system and how one innocent man so easily slipped through them. —Matthew Carey, Deadline, 21 June 2025

Noun

Prosecutors at the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague accuse the 80-year-old political patriarch of carrying out a brutal war on drugs that killed possibly thousands of people, including many innocents and bystanders. —Kathleen Magramo, CNN Money, 17 May 2025

Some rights groups say the death toll could be as high as 30,000 with innocents and bystanders often caught in the crossfire. —Kathleen Magramo, CNN, 12 Mar. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Adjective

Middle English, from Anglo-French, from Latin innocent-, innocens, from in- + nocent-, nocens wicked, from present participle of nocēre to harm — more at noxious

First Known Use

Adjective

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1b

Noun

14th century, in the meaning defined above

Kids Definition

innocent

adjective

in·​no·​cent ˈin-ə-sənt 

1

: free from sin : pure

2

: free from guilt or blame : guiltless

innocent of the crime

3

: free from harmful influence or effect : harmless

innocent fun

4

: naive sense 1, unsophisticated

innocent noun

innocently adverb

Medical Definition

innocent

adjective

in·​no·​cent ˈin-ə-sənt 

: lacking capacity to injure : benign

an innocent tumor

innocent heart murmurs

Legal Definition

innocent

adjective

in·​no·​cent ˈi-nə-sənt 

: characterized by innocence

Biographical Definition

Innocent

biographical name

In·​no·​cent ˈi-nə-sənt 

name of 13 popes: especially II died 1143 (pope 1130–43); III 1160(or 1161)–1216 (pope 1198–1216); IV died 1254 (pope 1243–54); XI 1611–1689 (pope 1676–89)