naivete
noun
-ˌē-və-; nä-ˈēv-ˌtā, -ˈē-və-; nī-\
Definition of naivete
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Synonyms & Antonyms for naivete
Synonyms
artlessness, greenness, guilelessness, ingenuousness, innocence, naiveness, naivety (also naïvety) [chiefly British], naturalness, simplemindedness, simpleness, simplicity, unsophistication, unworldliness, viridity
Antonyms
artfulness, cynicism, knowingness, sophistication, worldliness
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Examples of naivete in a Sentence
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The naivete is what those like R. Kelly depend on to ultimately afflict the young girl and therefore take advantage of the situation. — Morgan Jerkins, Teen Vogue, "R. Kelly and Other Powerful Men Have Always Manipulated Their Teen Fans," 9 Jan. 2019 Fear, whether out of ignorance, naivete or paranoia, forms the foundation of the IRS phone call scam. — David J. Neal, miamiherald, "Those threatening scam IRS phone calls? Somebody's going to jail for them," 10 July 2018 And the Googlers writing in favor of Dragonfly, with what an only be called naivete, sidestep the issue entirely. — Casey Newton, The Verge, "Dueling employee petitions have revealed a deep divide within Google over China," 29 Nov. 2018 This results in a series opener that boasts lots of gunfire and explosions, with a dash of naivete and idealism. — Rhonda Richford, The Hollywood Reporter, "John Krasinski Talks Playing a "Superhero" in 'Jack Ryan'," 17 June 2018 Critics of the president, though, said agreeing to the meeting signaled naivete, bestowing enormous prestige on Kim without any concessions having been made in advance by Pyongyang. — Jonathan Kaiman, latimes.com, "Speculation blazes in Beijing: Is North Korea's reclusive leader Kim Jong Un in town?," 27 Mar. 2018 Nobody could have predicted the implications, but what annoys with the Zuckerberg testimony and so on is still this game of naivete. — Recode Staff, Recode, "Full transcript: Business management expert and author Tom Peters on Recode Decode," 7 July 2018 The naivete that stems from a mix of inexperience and hubris once again hobbled him here. — James Hohmann, Washington Post, "The Daily 202: Trump’s go-it-alone approach to foreign policy angers allies, benefits adversaries," 25 May 2018 Is there a statute of limitations on childhood naivete? — Tonya Alanez, Sun-Sentinel.com, "South Florida's Rob Hiaasen, novelist Carl Hiaasen's brother, killed in newsroom shooting," 29 June 2018These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'naivete.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
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