innocence
[noun]
Synonyms:
- guiltlessness, blamelessness, clean hands, incorruptibility, probity, purity, uprightness, virtue
- harmlessness, innocuousness, inoffensiveness
- inexperience, artlessness, credulousness, gullibility, ingenuousness, naîveté, simplicity, unworldliness

[TahlilGaran] English Synonym Dictionary ▲

in‧no‧cence /ˈɪnəsəns/ noun [uncountable]
[Word Family: noun: innocence, innocent; adverb: innocently; adjective: innocent]

1. the fact of being not guilty of a crime Antonym : guilt:
Can you prove your innocence?
protest/maintain your innocence (=say repeatedly that you are not guilty)
The prisoners continued to protest their innocence.

2. lack of experience of life or of knowledge of the bad things in the world:
In our innocence, we believed everything we were told.
the innocence of childhood

3. in all innocence if you do or say something in all innocence, you have no intention of doing harm or of offending anyone

[TahlilGaran] Dictionary of Contemporary English ▲

innocence
noun
I. being not guilty of a crime, etc.
ADJ. total
VERB + INNOCENCE declare, proclaim The prisoners passionately proclaimed their innocence in front of the jury.
claim She claimed total innocence of all charges.
protest Hayes has protested his innocence throughout the case.
demonstrate, establish, prove | be convinced of The solicitors were convinced of his innocence and urged him to appeal the conviction.
PHRASES in all innocence I asked her the question in all innocence. I didn't know it was going to upset her.
the presumption of innocence (law)

[TahlilGaran] Collocations Dictionary ▲

innocence
II. lack of knowledge/experience
ADJ. childlike, wide-eyed | lost | injured She replied to her father's accusations in tones of injured innocence.
apparent | mock
VERB + INNOCENCE lose He had lost the innocence of childhood.
retain | take advantage of She had taken advantage of his innocence.
PREP. in your ~ In his innocence he had allowed the salesman in to discuss vacuum cleaners.
with … ~ He grinned with apparent innocence.
~ about There is an innocence about the story.
PHRASES an air of innocence There was a touching air of innocence about the boy.
a look of innocence, the picture of innocence ‘You cheated!’ ‘I what?’ asked David, the picture of innocence (= pretending to look innocent).
a state of innocence

[TahlilGaran] Collocations Dictionary ▲