innocent

Etymology

From Middle English innocent, from Old French inocent, borrowed from Latin innocens (“harmless, inoffensive”), from in- (“not”) + nocēns, present participle of noceō (“to hurt”). Displaced native Old English unsċyldiġ.

adj

1. Free from guilt, sin, or immorality.
   I'm sure there's an innocent explanation for all this.
   The situation certainly looked bad, but it turned out that everything was innocent.
   2018 September 26, Brian Karem, "Bethesda Resident Describes "Culture Of Privilege" Leading To Exploitation And Abuse" in The Montgomery County Sentinelhttp://mont.thesentinel.com/2018/09/26/bethesda-resident-describes-culture-of-privilege-leading-to-sexual-assault "These were not innocent times," she said.
2. Bearing no legal responsibility for a wrongful act.
3. Without wrongful intent; accidental or in good faith.
   He didn't mean anything by it; it was an innocent mistake.
   The child's innocent question revealed the embarrassing truth in front of everyone.
4. Naive; artless.
5. (obsolete except medicine) Not harmful; innocuous; harmless; benign.
   Although an innocent murmur is not an obstacle to participation in sports and exercise, a pathologic murmur may necessitate restrictions on the child's physical activity. 2006, David J. Driscoll, Fundamentals of Pediatric Cardiology, page 43
6. (with of) Lacking (something), or knowledge of it.
   At the beginning of July Stafford station was innocent of buildings, except for a couple of coach bodies to house the staff, but the temporary accommodation to cover the period of building the new station was well on the way to completion. 1960 September, “Talking of Trains: Progress at Stafford”, in Trains Illustrated, page 522
   Her only slight comfort is that they are not as bad as the new litter of Awful children who resulted from this marriage, Lisa, Adam, Jason, and Kristen. By all reports, they are entirely innocent of manners of any kind. 1983, Judith Martin, Miss Manners' Guide to Excruciatingly Correct Behavior, section XVII
7. Lawful; permitted.
   an innocent trade
8. Not contraband; not subject to forfeiture.
   innocent goods carried to a belligerent nation

noun

1. One who is innocent, especially a young child.
   The slaughter of the innocents was a significant event in the New Testament.
2. (obsolete) A harmless simple-minded person; an idiot.