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 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 At one point, the Phantom and Christine, the ingenue and the object of his obsession, glide toward you in a gondola, crossing an underground lake. — Tribune News Service, Baltimore Sun, 3 Mar. 2026 Seen on the likes of Pamela Anderson, Ariana Grande, and most recently, Vera Wang, the micro bang was first popularized in the 1950s by film ingenues like Audrey Hepburn. — Kaleigh Werner, Footwear News, 6 Nov. 2025 Yeah, there’s a certain…I’m not playing the ingenue anymore. — Kyle McGovern, MSNBC Newsweek, 22 Oct. 2025 See All Example Sentences for ingenue
Recent Examples of Synonyms for ingenue
  1. angel
  2. innocent
  3. virgin
  4. fledgling
  5. greenhorn
Noun
  • The first one features a six-foot tall bronze cast angel whose wings enfold around a granite bench; the sculpture was intended to offer the comfort of an angel’s embrace for visitors who take a seat there.
    — Angie Leventis Lourgos, Chicago Tribune, 5 July 2026
  • The respected 13th-century Spanish rabbi Nachmanides (Ramban) chastises Lot for the atrocity of offering his daughters in place of the angels.
    — Encyclopedia Britannica, Encyclopedia Britannica, 2 July 2026
Definition of angel
Noun
  • Over 5,000 deaths, most of them for innocents not driving trucks, in 2023 alone.
    — John Tamny, Forbes.com, 29 June 2026
  • Whatever conclusions investigators might reach, the loss of at least 50 souls, and the wounding of dozens more innocents, is an unbearable blow for any community.
    — Orlando Sentinel Editorial Board, The Orlando Sentinel, 12 June 2026
Definition of innocent
Noun
  • In another, called Leucippe and Clitophon, Leucippe is saved from being sacrificed as a virgin by the timely appearance of an actor who uses theatre tricks used to perform deaths on stage to fake her death and spirit her away.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 30 June 2026
  • Some recycled materials are on par, some are cheaper with virgin, others more expensive, and every single scenario is different.
    — James Morris, Forbes.com, 27 June 2026
Definition of virgin
Noun
  • News comes in the wake of another milestone in the 31-year-old’s fledgling career when he was invited to join the 79th Cannes main competition jury last May.
    — Anna Marie de la Fuente, Variety, 3 July 2026
  • Huang cofounded Nvidia in 1993 and has transformed it from a fledgling video game chipmaker to the engine behind the AI revolution.
    — Marco Quiroz-Gutierrez, Fortune, 1 July 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 11 Jul. 2026.

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