variants also naivete or naiveté
1
2
as in gullibility
readiness to believe the claims of others without sufficient evidence though he was streetwise, the investigative reporter regularly assumed an air of naïveté when he was interviewing confidence men, charlatans, counterfeiters, and other assorted swindlers of the general public

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for naïveté
Noun
  • The claims led to Rocky’s arrest and widespread headlines, but the rapper maintained his innocence.
    Preezy Brown, VIBE.com, 9 Sep. 2025
  • Patterson, who maintained her innocence throughout the trial and said the poisonings were accidental, has 28 days to appeal her sentence.
    Alasdair Pal, USA Today, 8 Sep. 2025
Noun
  • And in a world where time is money, conditions are ripe for a perfect storm of greed, deceit, and willful gullibility—all in the hope of getting ahead faster than the rest.
    Luis E. Romero, Forbes.com, 27 Aug. 2025
  • Ignoring the problem of online gullibility felt irresponsible – even negligent.
    Sam Wineburg, The Conversation, 26 Aug. 2025
Noun
  • Those who enjoy the simplicity and ease of a hair serum will like Hers’s Minoxidil Solution.
    Kiana Murden, Vogue, 12 Sep. 2025
  • The secret’s in the simplicity—and the rave reviews say it all.
    Cameron Beall, Southern Living, 11 Sep. 2025
Noun
  • The most severe drop was in press freedom when compared with five years ago, but the indicator for the credibility of elections was at its lowest in 30 years.
    Matthew Tostevin John Feng, MSNBC Newsweek, 11 Sep. 2025
  • In a single attack, US credibility across the Middle East was put on the line.
    Oren Liebermann, CNN Money, 11 Sep. 2025
Noun
  • My only advice is to NOT believe her if MIL tries to claim ignorance of the dangers that have informed your decision about phones.
    Virginia Chamlee, PEOPLE, 15 Sep. 2025
  • But if the joke and the ignorance are equally yoked, people will laugh.
    Kathryn VanArendonk, Vulture, 15 Sep. 2025
Noun
  • Action movies have long strained the limits of credulity.
    Brian Truitt, USA Today, 3 July 2025
  • His credulity led to misadventures the details of which are so picayune that Chernow’s emphasis on them can be maddening.
    Graeme Wood, The Atlantic, 9 May 2025
Noun
  • White, who died in 2021 just shy of her 100th birthday, played a widow and mother of five, Rose, who was known for her naivety.
    Melina Khan, USA Today, 5 Aug. 2025
  • There is a visible naivety to Onley after these big results, a sense of confusion over why the attention on him is so fierce, so quickly.
    Jacob Whitehead, New York Times, 25 July 2025
Noun
  • Gilbert’s colloquial style, once a source of great pleasure, has tipped into new territory—an ingenuousness that blends guru and disciple, mother and child.
    Jia Tolentino, New Yorker, 25 Aug. 2025
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.

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Cite this Entry

“Naïveté.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/na%C3%AFvet%C3%A9. Accessed 17 Sep. 2025.

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