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Synonym Chooser

How is the word artless different from other adjectives like it?

Some common synonyms of artless are ingenuous, naive, natural, and unsophisticated. While all these words mean "free from pretension or calculation," artless suggests a naturalness resulting from unawareness of the effect one is producing on others.

artless charm

When is it sensible to use ingenuous instead of artless?

While the synonyms ingenuous and artless are close in meaning, ingenuous implies inability to disguise or conceal one's feelings or intentions.

the ingenuous enthusiasm of children

When would naive be a good substitute for artless?

Although the words naive and artless have much in common, naive suggests lack of worldly wisdom often connoting credulousness and unchecked innocence.

politically naive

Where would natural be a reasonable alternative to artless?

While in some cases nearly identical to artless, natural implies lacking artificiality and self-consciousness and having a spontaneousness suggesting the natural rather than the man-made world.

her unaffected, natural manner

When might unsophisticated be a better fit than artless?

The synonyms unsophisticated and artless are sometimes interchangeable, but unsophisticated implies a lack of experience and training necessary for social ease and adroitness.

unsophisticated adolescents

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of artless The untenable toxicity of this artless warfare has led some researchers to rethink the ancient script—and flip it: know yourself, know your enemy. Beth Mole, Ars Technica, 15 July 2024 His desire to control his own story may account for why his book about his years hiding under the fatwa, 2012’s Joseph Anton: A Memoir, was so artless, a tome of grievances and gripes; that was Great Man Rushdie laying claim to his own existence as intellectual property. Sanjena Sathian, Vulture, 16 Apr. 2024 Jean Seberg and Jean-Paul Belmondo are Patricia and Michel, the gamine and the criminal, simultaneously artless and deliberate. Ew Staff, EW.com, 7 May 2024 His pictures look perfectly artless, the opposite of the decisive moment and the epitome of the snapshot aesthetic. Vince Aletti, The New Yorker, 29 Jan. 2024 See All Example Sentences for artless
Recent Examples of Synonyms for artless
Adjective
  • Baltimore Mayor Brandon Scott emphasized that the city's drinking water remains unaffected by the spill.
    Barney Henderson, MSNBC Newsweek, 5 June 2025
  • The administration’s alternate pathways to imposing its tariffs and avoid legal scrutiny could include using Section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act, which was unaffected by the court’s ruling.
    David Goldman, CNN Money, 29 May 2025
Adjective
  • The clumsy use of voice-overs is more embarrassing still.
    Charles McNulty, Los Angeles Times, 6 June 2025
  • In the latest, a clumsy but charming young woman in Paris, struggling to become a writer and longing for Jane Austen-style romance, finally has her moment at a Jane Austen Writers’ Residency in England.
    Jill Goldsmith, Deadline, 25 May 2025
Adjective
  • Learning to be resilient from the inside out is essential for developing genuine capacity and successfully navigating challenging times.
    Melissa Cidado, Forbes.com, 10 June 2025
  • Being transparent in this way helps build trust and demonstrates a genuine dedication to improvement.
    Rolling Stone Culture Council, Rolling Stone, 9 June 2025
Adjective
  • Carry-on rules exist for a reason and deliberately ignoring the rules is both rude and inconsiderate to everyone else who is.
    Soo Kim, MSNBC Newsweek, 11 June 2025
  • Matthews walked out of the home to talk to the suspect but returned to the house, saying Hoskins-Ellis said something rude to him.
    PJ Green, Kansas City Star, 9 June 2025
Adjective
  • Better yet, this was all relatively simple to accomplish and extremely user intuitive.
    Todd Martens, Los Angeles Times, 5 June 2025
  • Serving clients around the globe, ACE operates with a simple but powerful mission: to help individuals and companies navigate aircraft transactions with confidence, clarity, and efficiency.
    Matthew Kayser, USA Today, 5 June 2025
Adjective
  • The government’s finances are highly sensitive to fluctuations in crude prices, with oil and gas earnings making up around 30% of federal revenues in 2024, according Heli Simola, senior economist at the Bank of Finland.
    Lee Ying Shan, CNBC, 6 June 2025
  • Oil producers’ group OPEC+ decided to up its production levels despite weak crude prices, in what is being seen as a bid to hold on to its market share in a tough economic environment.
    Gaurav Sharma, Forbes.com, 2 June 2025
Adjective
  • How can leaders conduct honest conversations without inspiring defensiveness, denial, or backlash?
    Lauren Howe, Forbes.com, 10 June 2025
  • One of those fans, apparently, is singer Ciara, who recently urged the Harlem artist to make Lampkin an honest women after running into the rapper in the BET Awards press room this weekend.
    Jessica Bennett, VIBE.com, 9 June 2025
Adjective
  • Everyone plodded along, trying desperately to avoid rough that hasn’t been cut and greens that never seem to lose their speed.
    Doug Ferguson, Los Angeles Times, 15 June 2025
  • More Getty Images Clark, the 2023 U.S. Open champion, had a rough week.
    Devlina Sarkar, MSNBC Newsweek, 15 June 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Artless.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/artless. Accessed 18 Jun. 2025.

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