innocens

Innocens is a Latin adjective meaning innocent, harmless, or guiltless. It is used to describe a person or thing that is not guilty of wrongdoing or that causes no harm. Beyond moral judgments, it can also convey the sense of being harmless or benign in a general, non-blaming way.

Etymology and form: Innocens is formed from the prefix in- meaning not and the participial stem nocēns from nocēre, “to harm.” The word is a third‑declension adjective and agrees with gender and number in all typical Latin patterns. The genitive singular is innocents or innocentis, depending on the morphological reading, and it appears in predicative and attributive use. In neuter formulations, the term follows the same semantic range, often translated as “innocent” or “harmless” in English.

Usage: In classical and medieval Latin, innocens serves both moral and legal senses, describing a person who is not guilty or a thing that does no harm. It can stand as a substantive in some phrases, meaning “the innocent person.” In modern scholarship and dictionaries, innocens is cited as part of Latin vocabulary for translating concepts of innocence, pureness, or harmlessness. Outside strictly Latin contexts, the form is rarely used as a contemporary word, but it appears in Latin phrases, translations, and discussions of ancient texts.

See also: Innocence, innocence-related terms in Latin such as innocentia, nocere (to harm), and Latin grammar references on third-declension adjectives.