ingenue

noun

variants or ingénue
Definition of ingenuenext
as in angel
an innocent girl or young woman In her latest film she plays the part of an ingenue.

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Example Sentences

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.
Recent Examples of ingenue Our best ingenues would queue to star as Dora and Nora. — Brittany Allen, Literary Hub, 10 June 2026 The inarguable breakout star of the 2026 awards season was Chase Infiniti, whose starring role in One Battle After Another swiftly elevated her from Hollywood ingenue to budding A-lister. — José Criales-Unzueta, Vanity Fair, 5 May 2026 In wrestling terms, Ghost plays the babyface ingenue to her more jaded collaborators’ heels. — Judy Berman, Time, 15 Apr. 2026 Zendaya reinvented herself from Disney Channel ingenue into bona fide superstar with her two-time Emmy-winning performance as teen drug addict Rue in seasons 1 and 2. — Brendan Le, PEOPLE, 8 Apr. 2026 See All Example Sentences for ingenue
Recent Examples of Synonyms for ingenue
  1. angel
  2. innocent
  3. virgin
  4. fledgling
  5. greenhorn
Noun
  • His new novel, Vigil, tells the story of an angel tasked with helping a billionaire feel a degree of remorse for his actions before crossing over.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 28 Sep. 2026
  • The $8 million pre-seed round was led by Silent Ventures, with participation from Riot Ventures, Harpoon, Reveille VC, Hillwood, Mana Ventures, Climate Capital, Alumni Ventures, and angel investors.
    — Neetika Walter, Interesting Engineering, 24 Sep. 2026
Definition of angel
Noun
  • On that terrible day, millions of Americans witnessed airplanes flying into buildings, people jumping off skyscrapers, and the Twin Towers collapsing with thousands of innocents inside.
    — Foreign Affairs, Foreign Affairs, 18 Aug. 2026
  • The Night Court will not stand idly by while innocents are attacked.
    — Clare Mulroy, USA Today, 17 Aug. 2026
Definition of innocent
Noun
  • Bridget reads Lizzie the tale of Countess Elizabeth Báthory of Ecsed (also portrayed by Krieps), a 16th-century Hungarian noblewoman said to have bled beautiful virgins to bathe in their blood and preserve her beauty.
    — Aramide Tinubu, Variety, 17 Sep. 2026
  • Next, take a lint-free cloth and rub a small amount of virgin, unrefined coconut oil into the wood in a swirling circular fashion.
    — Emily Hayes, Martha Stewart, 17 Sep. 2026
Definition of virgin
Noun
  • By the end of Volume I, the court romance has devolved into a series of infidelities, both personal and political, which cause the corruption and destabilization of England’s fledgling democracy.
    — Eileen Hunt, Fortune, 28 Sep. 2026
  • As the nor’easter takes shape off the Mid-Atlantic coast on Wednesday or Thursday, air will be squeezed between the fledgling storm and that high pressure farther north, increasing wind speeds along the East Coast.
    — Mary Gilbert, CNN Money, 22 Sep. 2026
Definition of fledgling
Noun
  • Flecks of mica and pyrite and who knows what, but only fools and greenhorns mistake it for gold.
    — John Archibald, Southern Living, 11 June 2026
  • The indestructible Gill, still strolling the fairways of the magazine, was more than welcoming to a greenhorn.
    — Anthony Lane, New Yorker, 5 May 2025
Definition of greenhorn

Browse Nearby Words

ingeniousness
ingenue
ingenues
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Cite this Entry

“Ingenue.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/ingenue. Accessed 4 Oct. 2026.

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