Naif — meaning, pronunciation & more

Definition

a naive or inexperienced person

marked by or showing unaffected simplicity and lack of guile or worldly experience

Pronunciation

🇺🇸American English

/naɪˈiːf/

🇬🇧British English

/naɪˈiːf/

🇮🇳Indian English

/naɪˈiːf/

1 syllable Say it as /naɪˈiːf/.

Examples

a teenager's naive ignorance of life
the naive assumption that things can only get better
this naive simple creature with wide friendly eyes so eager to believe appearances

Synonyms & Antonyms

Synonyms

naive

Antonyms

sophisticated

Parts of Speech

noun	a naive or inexperienced person
adjective	marked by or showing unaffected simplicity and lack of guile or worldly experience “a teenager's naive ignorance of life”

Word Forms

naiveness

noun

lack of sophistication or worldliness

Around the World

Europe

🇩🇪German

naiv

eine naive oder unerfahrene Person

🇫🇷French

naïf

une personne naïve ou inexpérimentée

🇪🇸Spanish

ingenuo

una persona ingenua o inexperta

🇮🇹Italian

ingenuo

una persona ingenua o inesperta

🇳🇱Dutch

naïef

een naïef of onervaren persoon

🇵🇹Portuguese

ingênuo

uma pessoa ingênua ou inexperiente

🇷🇺Russian

наивный

наивный или неопытный человек

India

🇮🇳Hindi

भोला-भाला

एक भोला या अनुभवहीन व्यक्ति

🇮🇳Kannada

ನೈಫ್

ನಿಷ್ಕಪಟ ಅಥವಾ ಅನನುಭವಿ ವ್ಯಕ್ತಿ

🇮🇳Malayalam

നയിഫ്

ഒരു നിഷ്കളങ്ക അല്ലെങ്കിൽ അനുഭവപരിചയമില്ലാത്ത വ്യക്തി

East & Southeast Asia

🇨🇳Chinese

奈夫

天真的或没有经验的人

🇯🇵Japanese

ナイフ

世間知らずまたは経験の浅い人

🇰🇷Korean

순진한

순진하거나 경험이 없는 사람

🇻🇳Vietnamese

ngây thơ

một người ngây thơ hoặc thiếu kinh nghiệm

🇹🇭Thai

นาอิฟ

คนที่ไร้เดียงสาหรือไม่มีประสบการณ์

Middle East

🇸🇦Arabic

ساذج

شخص ساذج أو عديم الخبرة

🇮🇷Persian

ساده لوح

یک فرد ساده لوح یا بی تجربه

🇹🇷Turkish

saf

saf veya deneyimsiz bir kişi

🇮🇱Hebrew

נאיף

אדם נאיבי או חסר ניסיון

Test Yourself1 / 3

What is the primary definition of the word 'naif'?

The primary meaning of 'naif' is 'a naive or inexperienced person'.

Which of the following sentences uses the word 'naif' in a grammatically correct way?

Using 'naif' in a noun/adjective form makes the first sentence correct.

In which domain is the word 'naif' most likely to appear as standard vocabulary?

'naif' is a standard word used primarily in general literature and formal communications.

Community Poll1 / 6

How often do you encounter the word 'naif' in your daily reading?

Very Often

Occasionally

Rarely

Never

Do you find 'naif' easy to spell?

Yes, very easy

Somewhat easy

A bit confusing

Extremely hard

In your opinion, does the word 'naif' have a positive, neutral, or gloomy tone?

Positive

Neutral

Gloomy

Vibrant

Which age group is most likely to use 'naif' in regular conversations?

Kids (3-12)

Teens (13-19)

Adults (20-60)

Seniors (60+)

How likely are you to use 'naif' in a professional email?

Very likely

Somewhat likely

Not very likely

Never

Would you classify 'naif' as formal, casual, or slang?

Formal

Casual

Slang

Archaic

Pick an option to see how others voted