1
: having or marked by unsophisticated or uncritical acceptance or admiration : naive
wide-eyed innocence
2
: having the eyes wide open especially with wonder or astonishment

Examples of wide-eyed in a Sentence

a wide-eyed and trusting child the sort of phony UFO "artifacts" that wide-eyed tourists fall for
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
The camera pans back to Atlas who appears to be watching the screen wide-eyed ad shocked, the marks over his eyes giving the impression that his eyebrows are raised in incredulity. Rachael O'Connor, MSNBC Newsweek, 2 July 2025 That is an evolution in itself since the wide-eyed wonder and element of surprise — tactically and emotionally — that came with winning the last Euros on home soil. Nancy Froston, New York Times, 30 June 2025 Squeezed between us in the bed, my daughter listened wide-eyed to the storm before drifting off to sleep. Frederick Dreier, Outside Online, 26 June 2025 While Baekhyun’s chocolate-brown hair during the Essence of Reverie promotions lent him a mature air, the tour’s platinum blonde hue underscored his playful spirit, one that shone with every wide-eyed glance and genuine laugh. Jeff Benjamin, Forbes.com, 25 June 2025 See All Example Sentences for wide-eyed

Word History

First Known Use

1789, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of wide-eyed was in 1789

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Cite this Entry

“Wide-eyed.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/wide-eyed. Accessed 9 Jul. 2025.

Kids Definition

wide-eyed

adjective
ˈwīd-ˈīd
1
: having the eyes wide open especially with wonder or astonishment
2

More from Merriam-Webster on wide-eyed

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