as in angels
an innocent or gentle person
an innocent who is often puzzled by and prey to the evils of the world
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Recent Examples of innocents
How much more dangerous could a regime become than one willing to murder innocents, during peacetime, 8,500 miles away?
—
Katherine Ellison, Washington Post, 19 Apr. 2026
The Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, and much of the Iranian security hierarchy, would not survive the first day of bombing; neither would about a hundred and seventy-five innocents in the southern city of Minab, most of them children.
—David Remnick, New Yorker, 21 Mar. 2026
In a key scene, the innocents jump back and forth between dinner parties playing out at the same time despite taking place on successive nights.
—Manuel Mendoza, Dallas Morning News, 8 Jan. 2026
The J6ers were not insurrectionists, traitors, and miscreants but patriots, heroes, and innocents.
—Jamie Thompson, The Atlantic, 6 Jan. 2026
Her investigation considers the history of several doomed innocents, beginning with Lana Clarkson, a B-movie queen who was brutally murdered and subsequently conscripted to the annals of true crime.
—Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 18 Dec. 2025
This lesson plan includes no discussion of how, in the name of socialism and equality, Cold War despots in Russia, Romania, Poland and other Eastern Bloc counties slaughtered innocents, seized property and sunk their countries into starvation-level poverty.
—Betsy McCaughey, Boston Herald, 12 Sep. 2025
Praying with your feet means to move, to advance, to take, literally, steps to make sure innocents are not gunned down in church or school by a madman.
—Joe Soucheray, Twin Cities, 6 Sep. 2025
But when innocents get dragged into the mess Robbie has created, the task force becomes more important than any of its members appear ready to handle.
—Alan Sepinwall, Rolling Stone, 28 Aug. 2025
Katherine Ellison, Washington Post, 19 Apr. 2026
The Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, and much of the Iranian security hierarchy, would not survive the first day of bombing; neither would about a hundred and seventy-five innocents in the southern city of Minab, most of them children.
—David Remnick, New Yorker, 21 Mar. 2026
In a key scene, the innocents jump back and forth between dinner parties playing out at the same time despite taking place on successive nights.
—Manuel Mendoza, Dallas Morning News, 8 Jan. 2026
The J6ers were not insurrectionists, traitors, and miscreants but patriots, heroes, and innocents.
—Jamie Thompson, The Atlantic, 6 Jan. 2026
Her investigation considers the history of several doomed innocents, beginning with Lana Clarkson, a B-movie queen who was brutally murdered and subsequently conscripted to the annals of true crime.
—Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 18 Dec. 2025
This lesson plan includes no discussion of how, in the name of socialism and equality, Cold War despots in Russia, Romania, Poland and other Eastern Bloc counties slaughtered innocents, seized property and sunk their countries into starvation-level poverty.
—Betsy McCaughey, Boston Herald, 12 Sep. 2025
Praying with your feet means to move, to advance, to take, literally, steps to make sure innocents are not gunned down in church or school by a madman.
—Joe Soucheray, Twin Cities, 6 Sep. 2025
But when innocents get dragged into the mess Robbie has created, the task force becomes more important than any of its members appear ready to handle.
—Alan Sepinwall, Rolling Stone, 28 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for innocents
Noun
-
That night, our CEO gets another shot on goal with a new gaggle of angels in New York.—
Neil Senturia,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
27 Apr. 2026
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The yarns of Joe Turner interweave gradually, everyday chit-chat, bargaining, and flirtation interlocking over time with threads of mysticism — both the ghosts of a brutal history and the ancestral spirits that stand protective and defiant like a phalanx of angels with shining swords.—
Sara Holdren,
Vulture,
26 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
When bumbling village policeman Derry (an endearing Nicholas Braun) dismisses any suspicion of foul play despite overwhelming evidence to the contrary, it’s left to the sheep to prove otherwise — despite no ability to converse with their human counterparts beyond Lassie-style leading and hinting.—
Guy Lodge,
Variety,
27 Apr. 2026
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Contrary to speculation about the intellectual capabilities of sheep, this herd loves solving fictional crimes and is pretty good at it, especially the very smart Lily (Julia Louis-Dreyfus) the titular head of this ragtag crew.—
Pete Hammond,
Deadline,
27 Apr. 2026
Noun
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And a thick hedgerow is no deterrent to foxes sneaking in to snatch small lambs.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
23 Apr. 2026
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These aren't cakes made of lambs, nor standard sweet cakes iced with pictures of lambs.—
Deena Prichep,
NPR,
4 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Innocents.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/innocents. Accessed 3 May. 2026.
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