ingenue

/ˈɑnʒənu/

//ˈɑnʒənu// noun

By · According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA) ·

"ingenue" is a 7-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“ingenue” is uncommon English (frequency #81,430 among 2,140 “I” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#81,430
frequency rank, English
2,140
“I” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - An innocent, unsophisticated, naïve, wholesome girl or young woman.

Corpus desk

Index EN-ingenue · ingenue · English

ingenue · rank #81,430 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #81,430
  • LEN-LONG 7 letters
  • VOW-4 4 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-MID 2,140
  • PHOTO-FINISH inferential

Nearest frequency peer: inferential (-1 rank slots)

Read with this headword: Spelling guide for this pattern

Desk codes from Wiktionary headword shape, FrequencyWords rank tier, confusable-pair count, generated misspelling depth, letter-cohort book size, and photo-finish peer. Not a difficulty grade.

Long-tail ranks near “ingenue”

Sparse band: bars invert rank so rarer forms read shorter

corpus weight

What this shows Long-tail view: where “ingenue” sits against similarly uncommon English ranks.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for ingenue
PropertyValue
Headwordingenue
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈɑnʒənu/
Letters7
Frequency rank#81,430
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “ingenue” in English

Word frequency stretches from the small set of words we reach for constantly (left) out to the long tail barely used once in a while (right).ingenuefalls in this rarity band:

#1#100#1K#10K#100K
← used constantlyrarely used →

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Rare peers in the same band: “inferential” (#81,429), “Inhofe” (#81,431), “inestimable” (#81,428). Among 2,140 “I” headwords, “ingenue” is #81,430. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

ingenue is uncommon English at frequency #81,430 among 2,140 “I” headwords, classed as anoun, transcribed /ˈɑnʒənu/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 3 senses are on record.

ingenue doesn't appear in our generated misspelling index, typically a sign the spelling maps closely to how the word sounds. Our dataset records no confusable match here, since no other headword is close enough in sound or shape to pair with it.

Etymologically, the entry records: Borrowed from French ingénue, the feminine form of ingénu (“guileless”), originally from the Latin ingenuus (“ingenuous”). The correct English form is ingenue, spelled I-N-G-E-N-U-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    An innocent, unsophisticated, naïve, wholesome girl or young woman.
  2. 2
    A dramatic role of such a woman; an actress playing such a role.
  3. 3
    Misspelling of ingenu.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

These source excerpts show how ingenue appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.

  1. She was seen as a gifted pop-country ingenue when, in a now infamous moment, Kanye West interrupted Swift onstage at the 2009 VMAs while she was accepting an award. The incident set in motion a chain of events that would shape the next decade of both artists’ lives.
  2. The intelligent and talented blonde who was fluent in English, French and Spanish was interested in art and joined a local theater group to work on set designs but wound up on stage playing an ingenue in Liliom and was spotted by director Vincente Minnelli.

Etymology

Borrowed from French ingénue, the feminine form of ingénu (“guileless”), originally from the Latin ingenuus (“ingenuous”).

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA); frequency ordering uses the FrequencyWords open word-frequency list (2018 English corpus, MIT). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "ingenue"?
"ingenue" is spelled I-N-G-E-N-U-E. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈɑnʒənu/.
What does "ingenue" mean?
As a noun, "ingenue" means: An innocent, unsophisticated, naïve, wholesome girl or young woman.
How do you pronounce "ingenue"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "ingenue" is /ˈɑnʒənu/. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What is the origin of the word "ingenue"?
Borrowed from French ingénue, the feminine form of ingénu (“guileless”), originally from the Latin ingenuus (“ingenuous”). See the full etymology section above for more details.
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Yes, PlainSpell is a completely free word reference. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, confusable pairs, homophones, and spelling corrections across 5 languages without any sign-up or subscription.

Similar English words by spelling shape

Same letter count and similar misspelling depth for "ingenue", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 7 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

horrify#81,412knitter#81,472Guptill#81,378Greyson#81,376

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list